Destinies In Collision
by Thomas Mc
Summary: Paulette catches her lover in bed with his secretary and runs away. She ends up hitting some type of large animal in Central Park and crashing into a tree. Then things get complicated.
1. Crash Boom Bang

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

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_Authors Note: Paulette catches her lover in bed with his secretary and runs away. She ends up hitting some type of large animal in Central Park and crashing into a tree. Then things really start getting complicated. (As always reviews and comments are welcome.)_

_PS. Several readers have asked me what it was that Paulette was wearing but I think it is more fun to let them use their own imagination so I'm still not going to say exactly what it was.  
_

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**Chapter 1 : Crash, Boom, Bang**

**March 2038**

Paulette was singing along to the bouncy tune playing on her radio. Even the heavily overcast sky and threat of thunderstorms couldn't dampen her spirits tonight. It was early evening and she was driving through Central Park on her way to surprise Frank for his birthday. Under her conservative business attire, she wore very sexy and provocative lingerie, guaranteed to get a rise out of any man. It was turquoise (that was Frank's favorite color), very short, low cut, silky, and clung to her curves like it was painted on. Life was good and tonight was going to be fantastic.

All day at work, the silky feel of the lingerie combined with thoughts of her plans for this evening had kept her in a high state of excitement, making it difficult to keep her mind on her work. She and Frank had been going pretty hot and heavy for the last six months and she was sure their relationship would be getting even more serious very soon. She was half expecting a proposal any day now. Who knows, maybe tonight would be that magic night she was hoping for. Glancing off to her right, in the rapidly darkening park, she spotted the Belvedere Castle where they had first met last fall. She came out of the park and turned right onto Central Park West. Her level of excitement and anticipation was rapidly increasing to nearly fever pitch.

Very soon, she saw her destination approaching to the left. Her excitement level jumped even higher at the sight of Frank's apartment building. She entered a parking garage that was a short distance away, wouldn't due to give the surprise away too soon, and almost ran the sort distance to his building. Using the key hidden behind the large permanent hallway planter, she let herself into his apartment. He should be getting home from work in less than fifteen minutes so she had to hurry. Within a few seconds, she was down to her lingerie, a red ribbon around her neck, and a birthday card attached to another red ribbon around her wrist. She checked the time on his mantle clock; he should be home any minute now. She grabbed up her discarded clothes and headed toward the bedroom.

As she reached for the handle of the glass French doors leading to the bedroom, she had a moment of uncertainty and the feeling that something wasn't quite right. Through the sheer curtains that covered the glass doors, she saw movement on the bed and heard a moan. Then she caught a view of the couple's profiles and recognized Frank and his secretary. Her heart turned to lead. She broke out in a cold sweat and she felt like she was about to pass out as she stumbled back away from the unopened door. She bumped into the back of the sofa and stopped. She never noticed when her clothes and purse fell from her hands to land between the sofa and end table. With a soft strangled sob, she turned and fled from the apartment.

~ o ~

The next thing she knew, Paulette was in her car driving through the park with no idea how she got there. She vaguely remembered fumbling with the manual access code buttons above the car door handle but she didn't remember getting from Franks apartment to her car or getting the spare key or leaving the parking garage. Her only clear memory was her last hazy sight of Frank and his secretary seen through those sheer curtains.

Her eyes were so full of tears from her crying that she could barely make out the dark road ahead and her car wandered toward the center of the road. She hadn't even engaged the car's Auto-Trak system. The collision alarm sounded and she swerved to avoid hitting an oncoming car, then hit a curb and swerved back the other way. She felt a thump as the car bounced then caught a glimpse of some large animal moving in front of her then another thump and something bounced off her suddenly broken windshield. There was a second loud crunching bang, accompanying pain then blackness.

~ o ~

Paulette awoke to pain. She was in her car, the front windshield was shattered, and the airbag hung limply from the steering wheel into her lap. It had **not** all been a bad dream. Her face, hands, chest and left leg hurt terribly and there was a ringing in her ears. Her whole body ached with every movement, making the effort to do anything more difficult.

She groggily reached over to unfasten her seatbelt but it wasn't there. She had not used it. A sharp pain went through her wrist when she opened her door. As she tried to exit the car, a pain shot up her leg and she fell out of the car banging her head into the edge of the door. She grabbed the open door for support, sending another sharp pain through both her wrists. Slowly, painfully she pulled herself to her feet. Her left leg hurt terribly and she was so dizzy.

What in the world had she hit? The front of her car was up against a tree. Was that it? She was sure it had been moving; a large animal or something. A groan off to her left drew her attention. Oh no, it couldn't be! She had hit someone! She stumbled toward the trees where she heard the groan. She could see nothing there. God her leg hurt so. Then she heard movement to her right. She peered into the shadows in that direction. There it was. Something moved on the ground. All she could see was a large vague shape that was sprawled on the ground. Cautiously, fearfully, she approached, each step sending a sharp pain up her left leg.

~ o ~

**Agony**. His whole body was in pain. He became aware of the feel and smell of cool wet grass against his face. He was lying on the ground. He groaned as he opened his eyes and saw a lot of tree trunks and bushes. He must be in the park but he could not quite remember how he got here or why he was lying on the ground and in pain. He knew that this place should be familiar but he couldn't think of the name of the park. His mind was fuzzy and he was having trouble collecting his thoughts.

_Pain_. _Deep sorrow_. _Confusion_. _Fear_. The emotions he was feeling were not his own, they belonged to some other. He became aware of another presence. This was bad. He didn't know why it was bad; he just knew that it was. He tried to get up. **Pain!** This time it was his and he fell back with a groan. _Fear_. _Uncertainty_. _Guilt_. The other presence was approaching. _Caution_. There was a feather light touch on his shoulder. He groaned again. It seemed to be all he could do. _Sympathy_. _Guilt_. The touch on his shoulder became a pressure and the force of it pushed him over onto his back with another groan of pain. _Surprise! Shock! Terror!_ A tiny sound of an indrawn breath combined with a half squawk. "Oh my god!"

He opened his eyes and beheld the other. She was standing five feet away with her back to a tree, her hand to her mouth and her fear reflected in her eyes. Her hair was disheveled; there was a nasty looking gash on the right side of her forehead; and there was blood on her face. She was nearly naked and she was beautiful.

There were more others nearby. Their emotions were crude, unpleasant. Then the frightened woman shifted sideways around the tree and turned to run away. She took two steps then stopped with a sudden sharp rise in her _fear _as it turned to _panic_. The others gave off very bad, harsh emotions. He heard a half scream. Slowly, painfully, he struggled to his feet.

~ o ~

Paulette edged around the tree, keeping a wary eye on the terrifying creature she had just found. It was like something out of those horror movies she had always been so fond of. Then she turned to run and found herself facing three very nasty looking thugs. As they approached, making rude and frightening comments, she was suddenly acutely aware of her current state of near undress. She stepped back and was again backed up against a tree.

She was trembling as her panic overwhelmed her and she choked on her own scream. The three thugs stopped advancing and all got very wide-eyed looks of fear on their faces. Then she heard a terrifying roar come from behind her, to the right, and then all three of her intended attackers screamed and ran away. Her heart pounding wildly, Paulette turned to see the terrifying bloody apparition standing less than eight feet from her, its claws raised to strike, a snarl of rage on its lion like face.

She was rooted to the spot. She wanted to run but she was paralyzed in fear and the pain in her leg was getting worse.

The monster's arms dropped to its side and hung there loosely as it swayed for a couple of seconds. Then it dropped to its knees and slowly keeled over onto its side. She stood there staring at it for several seconds before she could bring herself to move. Finally she took a step backwards, then another. She turned and, ignoring the pain in her leg, practically ran the ten feet back to her car. She climbed in, the motor was still running, and started to back away from the tree she had hit.

She turned the wheel and her, out of alignment but still functioning, left headlight swung around and came to rest on the body of the monster. She stopped and stared at the motionless form for almost a minute then she eased the car forward until she was almost up to it. After screwing up her courage, she got out of the car and came around to look more closely. In the pool of light from her headlight, the creature was even more frightening with its lion like features, the fangs barely visible in its half-open mouth, and the long sharp claws on its fur covered hands. She could also see that it was in very bad shape.

She went back to her car and retrieved her first-aid kit from her trunk. The pain in her left leg was becoming almost unbearable as she limped back to the monster. She started to kneel beside the downed monster when her left leg gave out. She cried out from the sharp pain as she collapsed to the ground. Slowly, painfully she shifted herself into a position where she could reach the monster. She was trying to stanch the bleeding on the side of the creature's head when a movement at the corner of her eye caused her to look up. There illuminated by her headlight were two more monsters, standing over her. They both looked just like the one she had hit. With a terrified squawk, she surrendered to oblivion.

~ o ~

Consciousness slowly returned as Paulette became aware of a constant erratic banging noise. She was lying on her back and her body ached. There was something heavy constricting her left leg, which hurt terribly. She caught the faint odor of damp earth and hot candle wax, mixed with antiseptic. The horrifying image of two monsters looking down at her as she sat on the ground next to the injured monster haunted her memory. She opened her eyes and saw a cave like rock ceiling above her. She reached up and felt the bandage around her head. Both of her wrists were wrapped in a flexible bandage and her ribs hurt. She began to look around and realized that she was in what appeared to be some type of underground emergency room.

She pushed herself into a sitting position, the effort causing sharp pain in her wrists and her ribs. The soft warm quilt that had been covering her fell away revealing the provocative lingerie that was all she had been wearing. As she quickly pulled the quilt up around herself, she spotted the injured monster laying on another of the three examination tables in the room. It had also been bandaged up. Her head felt like it was spinning and she was having trouble thinking coherently. She swung her legs off the table and, looking down at the pain and weight in her left leg, realizing that it was in a cast.

A dark haired middle-aged woman dressed in layers of patched clothing, which Paulette had not noticed before, came rushing up to her. "What do you think you're doing, young woman? You're in no shape to be getting out of bed. You just lay right back down there." The woman gently but firmly pushed Paulette back down onto the table. She was too weak and dizzy to resist. "Now you stay right there. Someone will be along shortly to take you to a guest chamber where you can get proper rest and heal." The woman gave her one more admonishing look then turned her attention to the injured monster.

Paulette was feeling drowsy and could feel herself being overcome by sleep when she was startled to see the other two monsters from the park, accompanied by a very beautiful blond haired woman, enter the underground emergency room. With the blond woman looking on anxiously, the two monsters carefully loaded the injured monster onto a litter and carried it out of the room. All three of them had glanced over at her curiously before they left. With a shock, Paulette recognized the blond woman as District Attorney Elizabeth Maxwell. What was going on here? Was she losing her mind? With impossible images swirling through her head, she surrendered to the drowsiness and the world again slipped away.

~ o ~

Paulette felt herself moving, swaying, and, through bleary half opened eyes, she saw one of the monsters above her head. There was another at her feet with its back to her. Her fear welled up as the world faded away again and in the swaying dream, she heard an incredibly sexy male voice. "She's very pretty. Who do you think she is?" She never heard the response.

~ o x o ~

Paulette lay in a bleary half awake state. She was lying in a soft cozy bed and the erratic banging that had haunted her dreams continued unabated. Her memory was a hazy jumble of rock caves, a beautiful district attorney and impossible lion-men. Then she remembered her last view of Frank. She curled up in the bed and began to cry. How could he have done such a thing to her?

After several minutes, she heard that incredible voice from her dreams again. "Miss, are you OK?"

She opened her eyes in surprise, still sniffling and hovering on the edge of another sobbing breakdown.

The voice continued after a moment. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

Managing to get her chaotic emotions barely under control, she looked around and saw that she was still underground. That had not been a dream? She seemed to be in a small bedroom sized cave filled with old repaired furniture. She called out hesitantly. "Who's there?"

"My name is Joseph. I felt you crying and came to see if you needed anything." Replied that voice that seemed to touch something primal deep within her. The voice seemed to emanate from a large old tapestry that hung against one wall.

"Where am I?" She asked continuing to look around at the underground chamber she was in.

"You're in the tunnels deep under the city. It is our home." He replied.

"I don't see you. Where are you?" She asked.

"I'm standing in the tunnel right outside your chamber."

She looked around. "I don't see any door." She remarked a little worried. "Am I a prisoner?"

"There is no door. The tapestry covers the opening to your chamber to give you privacy. You are not a prisoner; you may come and go as you please, though I was told that you should not be out of bed until you have had a chance to heal."

She was feeling a bit isolated and lonely. "Can you come into this room with me?" She asked half hopefully. She wanted very much to see the face that went with that wonderful voice.

"I really shouldn't." The voice responded rather hesitantly.

"Why not?" She asked.

It was a couple of seconds before he responded. "I don't want to frighten you."

The image of the monsters from her dreams flashed through her mind then she shook her head. "Why would I be frightened of you?"

"You were afraid of me the last time you saw me." He replied.

It couldn't be possible. She had to know. "Please . . . come in so I can see you."

Clawed furry fingers appeared at the edge of the tapestry. They curled around the edge and started to pull it back. She was hit by a spurt of fear as she was reminded of a scene from a werewolf movie she had watched two weeks ago. The clawed hand paused then withdrew letting the tapestry fall back. "Wait!" She called out, now afraid that he would leave. "Please don't go away."

"I'm still here." The voice replied.

"Please, I want to see you." She begged as she, painfully, pushed herself to a sitting position ending with a groan. She felt a bit light headed and wondered what that woman in the infirmary might have given her. There was no response from beyond the tapestry. She remembered the name he had given her. "Please, Joseph, come in here where I can see you." After a few seconds, the clawed fingers again appeared at the edge of the tapestry and this time the similarity to the movie made her giggle. "Do you know how much that looks like a scene from an old horror movie?" Again, she giggled at the comparison.

The tapestry pulled aside slowly and the creature from her hallucination stepped out of video nightmares and into the room. Her heart did a kind of flip-flop as, for a couple of seconds, they stared at each other. He really did look like he was half lion and half man, - 'a were-lion?' -, and he was huge, well over six feet.

Then the lion-man dropped his eyes and half turned away from her. "Ah . . . you . . . ah . . ." He suddenly sounded and looked very shy and embarrassed.

Paulette was momentarily stunned by his reaction; it seemed so out of character for such a frightening apparition. Then she looked down and realized that the quilt had slipped down and she was still not quite dressed in the same provocative lingerie. She quickly pulled the quilt up around herself. "I, ah . . . I guess I need to find some clothes . . . or at least a robe to put on." She blushed furiously.

Joseph glanced at her then lowered his eyes and edged over to the set of drawers on the opposite wall from her bed. After a moment's hesitation, he pulled open the top drawer and pulled out a long thick robe. Then he very cautiously approached her and set it on her bed. She realized that he really was afraid of frightening her. For a moment, their eyes met and she saw an intensity there that was almost erotic. She felt a thrill go through her and, in his eyes, she swore she saw a reaction to her emotions just before he looked down and backed away.

She grabbed the robe and wondered momentarily if she should ask him to leave the room while she put it on, then decided that she didn't want to risk him going away. Besides, he had already seen her when he and the other one found her in the park. After a moment's hesitation she threw off the quilt. He glanced up at the sudden movement, getting a, pretty good, view of her before looking away again. She got the robe on then pulled the quilt up over her lap.

"Would you like to sit down so we can talk?" There was a hint of _longing_ for company in her voice and her emotions. "My name is Paulette Gibson." She added.

After a second's hesitation, he took the only chair in the room, which was already sitting close to the bed. They sat there looking at each other for several seconds then when the awkward silence was becoming unbearable he finally spoke. "What do you want to talk about?"

_**Continued in Part 2**_

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'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Dreams Collide _**_is sung by_**_ Colbie Caillat  
_YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?v=kzA6J2_Mtb8_**_  
Crash, Boom, Bang _**_is sung by_**_ Roxette  
_YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?v=9ofxdpbGUS4_


	2. Getting To Know You

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

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**Chapter 2 : Getting To Know You**

Paulette looked back at the incredible lion-man sitting in front of her, a moment. What **did** she want to talk about? Then she shrugged and told him the truth. "I don't know. I just wanted you to stay." She paused trying to screw up the courage to ask him something. "I . . . ah . . . I wanted to ask you . . . did I . . . did I really hit another one like you in the park?" She looked down embarrassed and afraid the question might make him mad at her.

"Yes, that was my brother, William, you ran into." He responded.

"I'm so sorry. Is he going to be alright?" She asked concerned.

"Doctor Teresa says that he has a couple of broken bones and a concussion but she said that he will be OK." He looked at her for a few seconds. "What happened?"

"I, ah, I guess I was . . . I was crying so much I couldn't see where I was going." There was a moment as the _sorrow_ welled up inside her and she got all choked up. Then she recovered enough to continue. "I think I jumped a curb. I . . . I didn't even see him 'til I hit him." She looked down for a few seconds feeling _guilty_ for what had happened. "I'm so sorry."

Joseph could tell by her emotions that she was truly _sorry_ for injuring William, and her _concern_ for his welfare was also genuine. He leaned forward resting one hand on the foot of her bed. "It's OK. William will recover. We are, generally, pretty tough and it takes more than a little bump from a car to take one of us out." He tilted his head and she could see a hint of sympathy reflected in his eyes. "There is so much sorrow in you. What is it that makes you so sad?"

Her last view of Frank came, unbidden, to her mind and the _sadness_ rose up within her again. "It was my boyfriend, Frank." She choked back a sob. "I went to surprise him for his birthday but I found him in bed with another woman." She hung her head and felt the tears gathering. She squeezed her eyes shut and felt the tears trail down her cheeks as the sorrow threatened to overwhelm her again.

After a second, she felt a warm soft hand touching hers. It felt good, comforting. She opened her eyes and through blurry tears saw his clawed fur covered hand resting on hers and he was sitting on the edge of the bed. Then he spoke. "This man Frank must be a total fool." There was a pause as he gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "He had a beautiful woman like you, who would dress for him as you were, there to help him celebrate his birthday, and he fools around with another woman?" She looked up to see him shaking his head. "The man is not worthy of someone like you."

She touched the back of his hand that was holding hers. "Thank-you for those kind words."

Now he smiled at her and she caught a glimpse of sharp fangs peeking out. They should have made him look even more frightening yet she was not bothered by them as much as she might have been. The longer he sat there talking, the less intimidated she felt. She was beginning to think that, intimidating as he was, he also really looked rather magnificent with his leonine features and that wild mane of hair. And how could she resist that incredibly sexy voice of his. It was so soothing yet so exciting at the same time. Every time he spoke she felt a quiver deep inside in reaction to it. She was also beginning to suspect that he knew exactly how his voice was affecting her. Then she wondered what a female version of him would look like and if he had a girlfriend, or mate, whatever. "Are, ah, are there many like you down here?" She finally asked, changing the subject.

He thought a moment. "I guess there are about a dozen of us. I never thought to count."

She wondered how many of them were female. "Do you have a . . ." She was suddenly feeling very shy. ". . . aaahh . . . do you have a . . . mate?" Now she felt a bit foolish and self-conscious.

He looked up surprised then chuckled showing a bit more of his fangs. With a smile, he responded. "No, I'm afraid I haven't found a . . . mate," She caught a hint of a glint of humor in his eyes. ". . . Yet."

She suddenly felt _sad_. If he had not found anyone among the twelve down here then was he doomed to be alone? She decided to change the subject again. "Did I really see Elizabeth Maxwell back in that emergency room . . . cave?"

"Yes, that was her." He leaned forward. "You don't need to worry about her. I will explain to mother that what happened was just an accident." He smiled at Paulette. "I don't think she will give you any trouble over it."

She felt that there was something odd about what he had just said but it took a few seconds for her to realize what it was. Then it hit her. "Wait a minute." She looked at him in surprise. "Did I just understand you to say that Elizabeth Maxwell . . . is your mother?"

He looked back at her in surprise, and then she saw understanding dawning in his eyes. Then he laughed. "Yes, Elizabeth Maxwell is mine and William's birth mother. The other one like me you saw in the park is my father, Charles." There was a twinkle of merriment in his eyes. The genes that make one like me are carried in the Y chromosome so the others like me are all males, and only those like me carry those genes. Otherwise, at least at the genetic level we are mostly human. We are more of a genetic anomaly rather than a different species, and we breed true. All of our female children are normal human."

She looked at him for several seconds digesting what he had just told her. Then she said the first thing that came to her. "Then you would mate with normal girls like me?" Suddenly she found herself blushing furiously at what she had just said.

He chuckled and when she finally looked up at him, she saw laughter and a hint of something more serious flash in his eyes. "Yes, if I took a wife it would definitely be someone like you." The look in his eyes made her blush even more as she found herself thinking very unladylike thoughts. "So you **do** find me interesting?" He asked with a hint of fire in his eyes.

Her blush deepened. "You know what I'm thinking?" She asked, very _embarrassed_ at the concept.

He chuckled again. "No, but I can feel your emotions. I'm an empath. I can feel other people's emotions but I can't read their thoughts." He cocked his head to one side, she was beginning to find the gesture very endearing. "I could sense a hint of erotic emotion in you but, since I can't read your thoughts, I can only hope that you were thinking about me at the time."

She felt a rush of _embarrassment_, accompanied by more inappropriate thoughts about him. Then another rush of _embarrassment_ because she could see his reactions to her emotions in his eyes. "Oh my." She hid her face in her hands, as she felt suddenly unable to stop herself from thinking about him. Then she looked up in surprise at his laugh.

He smiled at her. "If it helps any, I know how hard it is to control your thoughts and emotions under conditions like this and, truthfully, I like you and find you very attractive." There was that glimmer of fire in his eyes again. "I was having a very hard time keeping my thoughts under control when I was bringing you below from the park last night. You looked so beautiful." Now she noticed a hint of red under the thinner fur around his face as he glanced away.

Her eyes got wide. "You carried me down here . . . dressed like this?" She blushed more furiously and felt her body become very warm. He only nodded mutely.

She felt him start to pull his hand away from hers and quickly grabbed it. She really did not want him to let go right now. Finally, a thought occurred to her and she suddenly felt a bit _mischievous_. She looked him in the eyes. "OK you've seen me so I feel like I can ask . . . Does that fur cover your whole body?" She ended with a bit of a giggle.

He stared at her for a second in surprise then answered with a bit of a laugh. "Pretty much."

She suddenly felt very shy. "I, ah . . . I think I would like to get to know you better." She looked down blushing again.

The next thing she knew he had shifted so that he was sitting on the bed right beside her. "I would like that too." He replied quietly.

~ o ~

They had been talking for a couple of hours. Mostly they talked about what Joseph's life was like. She was surprised that he had been raised mostly above ground in an expensive brownstone adjacent to the park with his mother and father. He explained that there was plenty of privacy in that place with its frosted and stained glass windows and its direct connection to the tunnels. She was also surprised to learn that his grandmother on his father's side was the wealthy socialite Catherine Chandler.

Paulette told him a little about her life. Then she became worried. "What am I going to do about my job? I just started my new job as a book editor last month and I don't have a way to tell them that I can't come in to work."

He smiled as he responded to her. "Don't worry about that I'll have someone notify your boss about the accident and tell him that you will be out for a few days." He became alert and looked over at the tapestry with just a hint of worry.

Paulette looked at him curiously. "Joseph, is something wrong?"

He shook his head. "It's mother. She's in the tunnel right outside your door." He told her quietly. "I think she's looking for me." Then there was a slight smile on his face. "I think she is debating with herself whether or not to disturb you."

"Why would she hesitate?" Paulette asked quietly.

"Because the tapestry is down. To us down here, that is a very definite 'Do-Not-Disturb' sign." Joseph tilted his head and smiled at her. "Mother would never ignore that rule unless there was a real emergency. None of us would." He gave her hand a squeeze and called out. "I'm in here mom."

"Oh, Joseph." The woman responded then after a second she asked. "Is it all right for me to come in?" There was an indefinable hint of curiosity in her voice.

Joseph looked at Paulette for her response. After a second, she spoke up. "Sure go ahead and come in."

The tapestry was pulled aside and Elizabeth Maxwell walked in. At the barely suppressed look of surprise on her face Paulette was suddenly acutely aware that she and Joseph were currently sitting together on her bed and she had very little on under the robe she was wearing. Elizabeth's face shifted taking on just a hint of concern then turned her attention on Joseph. "Your father said that you came in here a couple of hours ago." The tone of her voice was clearly requesting an explanation.

Joseph spoke up. "I felt her crying and came here to see if I could help, and we got to talking." He glanced over at Paulette, a hint of concern in his eyes, as he continued. "She told me that she had gone to see her boyfriend for his birthday and found him in bed with another woman. That's how she ended up in the park. She was so upset she couldn't see where she was going and didn't see William until it was too late." He seemed to be trying to get it all out in one breath like a child in trouble trying to explain himself to his parent.

Elizabeth stood there looking at them both, taking it in. Paulette could almost see the wheels turning as her mind as she filled in the details for herself. Paulette became aware that her robe had come partially open revealing part of her original outfit. She was sure that Elizabeth had already seen more of it earlier and was factoring that into her deductions. Paulette found herself blushing again as she pulled the unruly robe closed. "I think I understand." Elizabeth finally said. "Is that your car in the park?" Paulette nodded her head. "And you were driving?" Again, she nodded her head. "OK, that's all I need to know for now. We'll talk again later." Elizabeth glanced speculatively at them both. "I have things to attend to." She turned and quickly left the room.

Joseph glanced at Paulette. "I'll be right back." Then he jumped up and exited the room. For several minutes Paulette sat there wondering what was happening and if he was really coming back. Finally, after several minutes, Joseph returned carrying a pair of old crutches. "I filled mother in more completely on what you told me and she said she would contact your boss for you." He set the crutches against the wall next to the bed. "You're going to need these if you want to be able to get around." He looked down at her. "It's getting close to lunch time. Would you like something to eat?"

"Well that would be nice but, ah, can you tell me how to find the, ah, little girls room, first?" She responded a little self-consciously.

He chuckled. "Sure thing. Let me help you up." He grabbed her arm and helped her to her feet. She was surprised at how strong he appeared to be. He handed her the crutches and got her balanced on them. "The left fibula, the small bone in the lower half of your leg, is broken so you are not to put any weight on it." He went over to the tapestry, pulled it back and hooked it to the side then bowed. "This way." He smiled as he swept his arm out the opening that was now revealed.

As Joseph led her to the necessary chamber, they encountered several normal looking people all dressed in layers of patched clothing that seemed to give them an almost medieval look. They all greeted Joseph cheerily as they passed them in the tunnel. Several asked him how William was doing and he always replied that Doctor Teresa said he would be OK. No one seemed the least bit put off by his appearance, though most of them glanced curiously at Paulette.

When she came out, Joseph was waiting for her and led her back to the small cave that was her room. "I'll go check on William then see about getting you something to eat." He grinned. "You'll find some clothes in those drawers. Dress in layers, it gets a bit cool and damp down here." He smiled, dropped the tapestry across the opening and was gone.

After a second, she went over to the chest of drawers and looked through it. The clothes all seemed to be patched together but they were all clean and neat. She had noticed that the women's clothes had a particularly feminine look to it. Also, the clothes felt very soft to the touch. She carefully picked out several pieces that looked good together. It all seemed to be the right size. At this point she noticed that there was no underwear among the clothes. Oh well, a minor oversight and the fabric was so soft that she could make due. Once she got the clothes all on, they felt so warm and comfortable and she felt just as feminine in these unusual clothes as the other women had looked. Some of the fastenings however were a bit unusual and, to her frustration, she found that some of them were beyond her ability with her injured wrists.

She heard Joseph's voice call from outside. "Is it OK if I come in?"

She again felt that little flutter deep inside her. "Yea, sure, come on in." She replied happily.

The tapestry billowed inward then slid off his back as Joseph backed into the chamber. He then turned around and she could see that he was carrying a tray with two plates of food that smelled heavenly and two mismatched cups. He set the tray down on the low table next to the bed and looked her over. "Looks like you're having a bit of trouble with the clothes."

She looked down at her hands. "Yea, it's my wrists." She brushed the unusual fastenings with her fingertips. I just can't quite manage these." She looked up at him ruefully.

"Would you like me to help you with that?" He asked diffidently and just a hint of a blush.

"Please." She replied.

Joseph stepped up to her and gingerly reached out to do up the difficult fastenings on the front of her sweater and vest. She felt a delicious shiver run up her spine as his hand brushed against her breast. Joseph felt her reactions to his touch and answering shivers ran up within his own spine as he helped her fasten her clothes. He was drawn to her like a moth to her flame. There was something so vulnerable, so sweet about her. And he just couldn't get the look of her in that nothing she had been wearing out of his mind, nor the feel of her barely clothed body in his arms as he had carried her below after they found her. He felt the need to help her, protect her. Finished he stepped back to admire her. Despite the bandages and bruises, she looked so beautiful to him.

He helped her hobble back over to her bed then pulled the chair up next to her and sat in it. As they ate, he told her a little about his family. He told her about his other brothers, Peter and William, and his sister, Clarissa. He could feel her _fascination_ as she took it all in. He could feel her shock of surprised recognition when she realized that his oldest brother's name was Peter Chandler-Wells. Over the last few years his children's books had exploded onto the popular culture scene. Joseph told her about the growing romance between Peter and Cherry, who grew up in the tunnels. He talked about his sister and her determination to become a lawyer and follow in their mother's and Grandmother's footsteps. He told her about how Grandmother Catherine had been living 'Below' since she retired from public life and disappeared from public view.

Joseph then began talking about the story of Catherine and Vincent and noticed that Paulette was totally engrossed in the story. He noticed that every revelation about his grandparents seemed to whet her curiosity to know more. "Do you like to read romantic stories?" He suddenly asked her out of the blue.

Paulette shrugged. "Yea," She grinned and looked down at her hands. "I guess you could say that I am a bit of a sucker for a good romantic novel." She blushed a bit as she looked at him shyly. "Why do you ask?"

Joseph broke into a big grin. "There is something that I think you will just love to see. I'll be right back." He jumped up and sprinted out of her chamber. A few minutes later, he returned carrying what she could clearly see was a large hand bound book. "You seemed so interested in Catherine and Vincent so I thought you might like reading this book. It kinda explains where we came from."

Paulette took the heavy volume and after glancing at the title, '**Once Upon A Time In The City Of New York**', printed on the cover in old English font, she opened it up. Her hands actually shook as she recognized the author's name and the copyright date on the hand written first page. She had been around the publishing industry long enough to realize that she was holding a small fortune in her hands. It wasn't a Gutenberg but she could easily retire and live the rest of her life in comfort on what this manuscript was currently worth.

Joseph could tell by her reactions, emotionally and physically, that she knew the value of this book in the world 'Above' and smiled. "I have other things that I must take care of so I have to leave you for a while but I thought you might enjoy reading that." He chuckled. "Just take good care of it. It's a family heirloom." He picked up the tray with the dirty dishes and exited the chamber.

_**Continued in Part 3**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Getting To Know You _**_is sung by_**_ Deborah Kerr_**_ in **The King And I** _**_  
_YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?v=gTNe6oD1mMk&feature=related_


	3. Suspicion

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 3 : Suspicion**

Elizabeth arrived late at her office, her mind preoccupied with William and Joseph and that girl Paulette. She may not be empathic like Charles and her boys, but she had no trouble seeing the strong attraction between Joseph and that woman. Joseph was only nineteen years old and still a bit young to be getting that involved with a twenty one year old girl. She had very little difficulty imagining what had happened to Paulette. The outfit she had almost been wearing when Joseph had carried her down from the park, combined with what her son had told her, left her with a pretty clear picture of the situation.

When she reached her desk, she found four new case folders. The first one was a jewelry store burglary in lower Manhattan. The second was a report on increased gang activity in Central Park. The third one grabbed her attention. At the top had been the words '**Hit and Run**' but they had been crossed out and underneath someone had written '**Disappearance (Possible Abduction/Murder?)**'. It was a police investigation report on Paulette's collision. Elizabeth swore softly. She had completely forgotten about that.

The police had investigated a report of a wrecked car that was spotted in Central Park. The car had been traced to Paulette Gibson. At first, it had been listed as a hit and run but all attempts to contact the owner had failed. Blood had been found on the inside of the car and it appeared that the car was being driven on manual, the Auto Trak was off. Traces of blood had also been found on the ground where the car had been left. The police had begun to suspect foul play.

A check with the driver's employer had revealed that she had not shown up for work this morning. They had returned to Paulette's apartment and had found it empty. The one clue they had found was a date book that showed an appointment with boyfriend Frank Mannford. He claimed to know nothing about it and said he slept alone last night but they had also found a pile of her clothes and her purse, including her car keys, on the floor of his apartment. Neighbors said they saw Frank take a girl into his apartment but did not see her leave. The police were now convinced there had been foul play and Frank was their prime suspect.

Elizabeth closed the folder. She should have dealt with that car last night before the police had gotten involved. She called the detective in charge of the case.

After she hung up the phone, Elizabeth stared into space. The detective had told her that there was nothing new in the case. They were checking out the boyfriend's work and interviewing his co-workers. He said he would let her know if there were any more developments. Elizabeth called Paulette's supervisor and asked him if he had heard from her yet. When he said he had not, she let enough slip about the investigation to be sure that Paulette would not get in trouble with her employer.

Now that the police were investigating, it could get complicated. One fortunate break was the early morning rain had washed away all the blood evidence in the park. At around lunchtime she arranged to have the blood sample from the ground get misplaced before they could have it analyzed.

~ o ~

He awoke to a throbbing ach in his head, chest, left arm and right leg. He groaned. "Take it easy, William, you're safe now." Remarked a female voice. He opened his eyes to see a vaguely familiar face looking down at him. She had called him William. Was that his name? The ceiling above him was rock, like in a cave. Where was he? How did he get here? The tunnels. He remembered the tunnels beneath the park. He closed his eyes as consciousness slipped away.

He became aware of the smell of candle wax and antiseptic. He opened his eyes. He saw the woman; her name was . . . Rosa . . . no Teresa. Rosa was her mother. He was in a vaguely familiar underground chamber. "The girl . . ."

Teresa was immediately by his side. "William, how are you feeling?"

He could feel _concern_, _worry_. She was worried about him. "There was a girl . . . injured, in danger." He tried to organize his jumbled thoughts. "What happened to the girl?" He looked around. "She was hurt . . . needs help."

"The girl is fine." Teresa responded. "Joseph found her and brought her Below."

"Joseph?" The name seemed somehow familiar.

~ o ~

Paulette continued to stare, stunned, at the book in her hands. Finally, she shook herself, gently turned the page and began reading. She soon found herself totally engrossed in the story of Catherine and Vincent and lost all track of time. She only stopped reading once to make the very difficult but necessary trip to the tunnel's lady's room.

~ o ~

Later that afternoon the detective in charge came by Elizabeth's office. "Good afternoon Detective, what brings you here?" She asked.

The detective leaned against her door. "I was looking up the records relating to that Central Park car accident case. Since you're already involved I thought I'd pick your brain and update you on the investigation."

Elizabeth was suddenly wary. Why would he think she was involved? Did he know about her misdirecting the blood sample or was it something worse? "I don't understand. How am I involved this case?"

"You don't know?" The detective gave her a surprised look and came over to her desk. "I thought that was why you asked to be kept up to date on this case?" He set one of her own old case files on her desk. "This was your case."

The file had Frank Mannford's name across the top and was about a sexual assault case from three years ago. She opened the folder. Frank had been accused by his secretary but the case had collapsed when no hard evidence had been found and the man's secretary had refused to testify against him and then disappeared.

Elizabeth looked up from the file. "How does this relate to the current case?"

"We have evidence that he was having an affair with his current secretary and the missing woman at the same time." He pointed at the file on her desk. "We suspect that the missing woman found out about the other affair and may have threatened him and he had to get rid of her." He tapped the file with his finger.

Elizabeth was intrigued in spite of knowing that his conclusions were wrong. "But why would he care if she said anything?"

The detective gave a half snort of a laugh. "Because his secretary is married and her husband is in a position to ruin him if he found out." He shook his head. "Also he is thirty-four and the missing woman just turned twenty-one last month. There's no law against that, but the news could hurt him socially."

Elizabeth found herself developing a serious dislike of Frank. When the contents of the old case folder were combined with the facts surrounding this case and what she personally knew had really happened, they painted a very unflattering picture. It was beginning to look like the situation may have actually turned out better for Paulette than it might have. The scenario the detective was espousing could have happened to Paulette if she hadn't left before Frank found out about her visit.

She looked up at the detective. "Have you talked to the secretary's husband yet?"

"No, but that is my next stop. I just wanted to check with you on this old case first." He picked up the folder.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you but I just don't remember that case." Elizabeth remarked, shaking her head. "It's just too common of an occurrence to stand out."

"I'll keep you up to date." The detective told her then turned and left her office.

Elizabeth stared out her door at the retreating back of the detective. That jerk, Frank, was in trouble up to his eyebrows but, at least where this case was concerned, he had not broken any laws. She was going to have to produce Paulette soon and bring this case to an end, before things went too far. Then she thought about what had happened to Paulette. The torn birthday card that the police had found near the tree she had hit tended to verify Paulette's description of what had happened to her. Then she thought about that man's former secretary. Maybe she could let the man twist in his own web for a few more days while Paulette regained her spirit and her health. She was beginning to sympathize strongly with Paulette.

Elizabeth realized that her feelings about the woman who had run into her son had changed significantly. Both Charles and Joseph had stated that Paulette had been trying to help William when they found her. That was a big point in her favor, not many would have tried to help her son. Most would have run away as soon as they got their first good look at him.

~ o ~

Paulette had no idea how long she had been reading when she heard the sound of someone clearing his throat and looked up to see the other lion-man standing in her doorway. When she had gone to the lady's room about a half-hour ago, she had forgotten about the tapestry and had left it pulled back. She shook herself as she pulled her mind out of the engrossing story.

"Mind if I come in?" The new creature asked as she stared at him. His voice had a similar effect on her as Joseph's had but not as strongly.

"Uh, yea, sure." She replied a bit flustered. "Ah, come in." She flipped the attached cord across the page, closed the book and set it on the low table next to the chair she was sitting in. She stared apprehensively at the large lion-man as he entered. Joseph had said that this was the father of the one she had hit.

"Hello, my name is Charles." He stated. "How are you feeling?" He asked.

"Ah, a bit sore." She responded. "Um . . . How is the one that I hit doing." She asked worriedly.

"He's a bit sore." Charles responded with a hint of a smile. "Joseph told me what happened to you. I'm sorry about that and I'm glad you're OK." He cocked his head. "Are you up to a visit from the doctor?"

She thought a moment then nodded. "I think so."

"Good. Doctor Teresa wants to check you over. While she is doing that, I could go get you something to eat. It's almost dinner time and I can tell that you're getting pretty hungry." He remarked.

At that moment her stomach rumbled to emphasize the hunger she had just become aware of. "Oops, I guess you're right." She looked up at him in surprise. "Are you a . . . ah, an empath too?"

"All of us . . . creatures . . . are empaths." There was definite amusement in both his voice and in his eyes.

"Creatures?" She gazed at him quizzically and just a bit embarrassed by his use of the term that had flitted through her own mind a few times.

He smiled, exposing his fangs. "Well, that's what they call us. Collectively we are referred to as the Creature of Central Park by those Above."

"Oh." She replied distractedly as Doctor Teresa entered her chamber.

"Can you shift over to the bed?" The doctor asked as she approached.

Paulette grabbed her crutches to pull herself up. "Oooh." She groaned from the pain in her wrists as she tried to get up.

Charles stepped forward. "Would you like me to help you?" He asked.

"Uh, I guess I could use it." She responded.

He reached out, took her arm, and helped her to stand up and shift over to the bed. "Thank you." She told him.

"You're welcome." He replied. He cocked his head. "You seem to be remarkably unafraid of me." He remarked.

She looked at him surprised. He had been right. She was not afraid of him. "I've been talking to Joseph." She replied.

"So I heard." He smiled then faced Teresa. "She's all yours Doctor." He turned back to Paulette. "I shall return shortly." Then he exited the chamber, dropping the tapestry across the door behind him.

Doctor Teresa turned to Paulette. "Now let's take a look at you and see how you're doing." She pulled a few instruments out of the old-fashioned black doctor's bag and began to examine her.

Teresa seemed generally pleased with Paulette's progress but was a little concerned about the state of her wrists. "There is a bit more swelling here than I like. There may be some hairline fractures." She remarked as she examined them.

"Doctor . . . how is the one that I hit doing?" Paulette asked.

Teresa looked up from her examination of Paulette's right wrist. "William is recovering." There was something very guarded to the tone of her voice.

"William, that's what Joseph called him." She stared into Teresa's eyes. "What happened to him? How bad was he hurt?" She could tell that the doctor was worried by her demeanor. "Please, tell me."

Doctor Teresa gazed at Paulette for a moment, took a deep breath and sat down. "I think he is going to be OK, but I won't be sure until he wakes up. When those like William and Joseph are seriously injured, they go into a deep sleep while their bodies heal the worst of the damage." She thought for a moment deciding how much to tell this woman. "He did wake up for a very short time earlier. He took a fairly hard shot to the head and there seems to be some memory loss. He wasn't awake long enough for me to gage the extent of it." She patted Paulette's shoulder. "Now don't you worry about William. He's tough and I'm sure he will recover. I'm constantly amazed by their recuperative powers."

Charles called from beyond the tapestry. "May I come in?"

Teresa stood up and finished putting her instruments away. "We're done in here. You may enter." She snapped her bag shut as Charles backed through the tapestry with a tray, much as Joseph had done earlier. "You take it easy, Paulette." She called as she left the chamber.

Charles set the tray down on the table by the bed and looked closely at Paulette then cocked his head very much the same way that Joseph had. "What is it that distresses you so?" He asked kindly.

"It's William. I feel so bad about what happened." She looked down. "I wish . . ."

Charles placed his hand on her shoulder. "Don't fret yourself. William will be OK. Right now you need to concentrate on healing yourself." He gave her shoulder a squeeze. "It's way too early to start worrying about William's condition."

"Aren't you worried about him?" She looked up.

"I'm his father. It's my job to worry about him." He sat down. "I also worry about your welfare. I cannot have you blaming yourself. It was an accident, pure and simple." He dropped his hand. "Now you eat. You need strength to heal." He stood up and headed towards the door. "I'll check in on you later." He left the chamber.

~ o ~

Joseph was on his way back after a long day filling in for William on a work crew when she encountered Elizabeth, who had just making her way home after work by way of the tunnels, near Paulette's chamber. "Hi, Mom. How was your day?"

"The usual." Elizabeth shook her head ruefully. "She shrugged. "It seems that Paulette's abandoned car was spotted by a jogger and reported to the police." She sighed. "Now, unfortunately, the police are investigating her disappearance." She cocked her head and eyed her son. "So how are things between you and our guest?"

Joseph looked at his mother, startled by the _curious suspicion_ and _amusement_ he felt coming from her. "Ah, OK, I guess. She's very distressed about William." He looked down. "She seems to be a nice person." He looked up. He knew that his mother wasn't fooled a bit by his remarks and he shrugged. "I kinda like her." He finished with a self depreciating grin. "A lot."

Elizabeth gazed at her youngest son for a moment trying very hard not to grin though she knew he sensed her amusement. "I suspect you found her mode of dress very interesting as well."

Joseph suddenly became very interested in the tunnel walls and floor as his face became very red. Elizabeth chuckled to herself as they continued down the tunnel. Together they stepped through the open doorway into Paulette's room. She was sound asleep. Her eyes widened in surprise when she recognized the book lying open across Paulette's lap but she didn't say anything about it. Elizabeth touched her finger to her lips and whispered. "Let's not wake her. She needs all the rest she can get." She carefully lifted the book and, marking Paulette's place, put it on the low table beside the bed. At the same time she noticed the gentle caring way Joseph pulled the sheets up to cover her.

Elizabeth unhooked and lowered the tapestry as they left the chamber.

~ o x o ~

_**Continued in Part 4**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

_**Suspicion **__is sung by_**_ Terry Stafford_**  
**YouTube**_ = www . youtube __ watch?v=ZAYrMsxMKp8&feature=related_


	4. Memories Traces

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 4 : Memories / Traces**

He slowly became aware of the, somehow strangely familiar, smell of hot candle wax and damp earth. A name seemed to drift into his mind, 'William'. Who in the world was William? He could sense that there were others nearby. He slowly opened his eyes. A vaguely familiar woman was looking worriedly down at him. He could feel a mixture of _worry_ and _hope_ radiating from her.

"William?" She gently touched his shoulder. "How do you feel? Are you OK?"

William, was that **his** name? He gazed quizzically back at the woman. "I'm OK, I guess. Ahh, who are you?" He asked the woman thinking that he should know her. The woman was _surprised_ and _upset_ by his question; he could feel it. "Do I know you?" He could feel the _worry, sorrow_ and _disappointment_ from the woman. His response had upset her.

"I'm Elizabeth . . . your mother." The woman replied.

He gazed at her a moment. "You do seem familiar to me but I . . ." Images quickly flashed through his mind and a few of them fell into place. "I do remember you, but it's all just bits and pieces." He frowned as the fragmented memories continued to flash through his mind. "Like a puzzle with half the pieces missing." He paused again then looked up at her in surprise. "Mother. I remember calling you Mother." He looked around at his surroundings. He was in some type of underground chamber. "Where am I?"

"You're in the tunnels dear." She replied. "Don't you remember the tunnels?"

He thought a moment. "It seems somehow familiar but I don't know why." He glanced back up at Elizabeth.

"You've spent a large part of your life down here in these tunnels. It's also how you get around the city without being seen." She responded.

Now why would he go underground to get around unnoticed? Was he an outlaw? He tried to sit up causing a pain to shoot through his ribs and fell back with a groan. Then he got a look at his hands. He reached up and touched his face. It all looked and felt familiar to him but it was not normal, not like his mother. He looked up at her, uncertainty in his voice, as he asked her. "Mother, what am I?" He held out his fur covered clawed hands as example. At his actions and words., he felt a sudden dramatic increase in the _sorrow_ that was coming from her.

The woman looked at him, her eyes shimmering, and he clearly felt a strong surge of _love_ and _concern_ coming from her. "You're my son. You are your father's and your grandfather's image and the second of our children." The _love_ coming from her had become almost fierce in its intensity. "You are William Chandler-Wells, a kind, gentle, loving soul. You are a friend to everyone that lives down here and a mentor to many of the young children we care for down in these tunnels." The intensity of her gaze seemed to pierce and hold him. "You are my beloved son."

He was stunned speechless as he lay there taking in her words as well as her emotions. He saw flashes of images of a few other's like himself. He was not unique or alone. He shifted and again felt the pain in his ribs and his head which snapped him out of his stunned state. "What happened to me?" He finally managed to ask.

"You were up in the park and you were hit by an out of control car." Elizabeth responded as her expression softened to motherly tenderness.

At her words, he had a sudden crystal clear image of a very pretty young woman in a wispy nothing of an outfit, being menaced by three nasty gang members. He looked anxiously up at his mother. "There was a girl. She was hurt and in trouble."

A soft smile crossed her face then she responded. "She is just fine, William. The young lady was actually on the ground beside you and trying to help you when your father and brother found you."

There was a definite softness in his mother's voice, but he felt just a hint of _anger_ mixed in with the _concern_ coming from his mother. "What's wrong? Why are you angry? Is she in some kind of trouble?" He asked her, concerned.

"No dear, it's not you or her." Elizabeth was greatly relieved at this indication that he was still able to sense her emotions. "It's her ex-boyfriend that I'm angry about. He is the one responsible for her current problems." She shook her head. "The girl is safe with us now and her injuries are healing."

Again, William saw the image of the pretty young woman in that very sexy lingerie and now he found that he wanted to see her again. "Can I . . . Can I see her?"

"Neither of you are in any shape to be moving around right now." Elizabeth remarked sternly then her voice softened and there was a hint of a smile on her face. "Maybe in a couple of days she will be up to coming over for a visit. For now you both need to get as much rest as possible." She placed her hand on his shoulder, the uninjured one, and gave it a squeeze. "You get some rest while I go and check on her for you."

She released his shoulder and left his chamber. William had felt her underlying _pain_. It hurt her to see him like this and he could tell how much his memory loss upset her. There was still so much of his memory that was missing. All he had was bits and pieces, traces, of a life. He remembered enough to know that he had at least one other brother that looked like himself and he had a father that bore a more that passing resemblance to himself and his brother. He thought he had memories of a sister but he wasn't certain and he couldn't recall her name.

Again, his mind came back around to that barely dressed girl. Even injured and bleeding, she had been very pretty.

~ o ~

Elizabeth had taken a long lunch to check up on her injured son and she decided to see how Paulette was doing as well. She stopped outside the guest chamber and called out. "Paulette, its Elizabeth. Are you awake? May I come in?"

"Sure, come on in." Paulette replied.

The remains of a lunch were sitting on the small bedside table. Paulette was sitting propped up in her bed reading the Brigit O'Donnell manuscript. "Who gave you that?" Elizabeth asked indicating the manuscript.

"Joseph brought it to me. It's an incredible and very romantic story." Paulette smiled up at Elizabeth, her mind still swirling with the romance that permeated the story, then her expression got serious. "Do you know how unique and valuable this manuscript is?" She looked back down and caressed the edge of the manuscript lovingly. "It's frightening to think that I was entrusted with something this valuable. I'm almost afraid to turn the pages too vigorously." She looked back up at Elizabeth. "If not for all the dangerous secrets contained in this book I would be urging you to get it published." She placed her hand over the page she had been reading. "But there are too many things in here that cannot be made public without endangering several people, like Joseph and his father and brother."

Elizabeth definitely liked the way this young woman thought. "I just finished talking to William, and I thought I would check in on you before I headed home."

"How is he doing?" Paulette asked anxiously. "Doctor Teresa couldn't tell me very much. All she could say was there might be some memory loss." She finished, worry plainly showing on her face.

"He's awake and recovering quickly. I suspect that, despite his more severe injuries, he will probably be back on his feet before you are." She paused a moment frowning. "His memory appears to be coming back but it is still fragmented, jumbled. It will take time." She looked at Paulette with a hint of mischief in her eyes. "He remembers you, though. I suspect that may have a lot to do with what you were wearing."

Paulette blushed and looked down. "Am I ever going to live that down?" She complained shaking her head.

"I doubt it." Elizabeth chuckled. "You made quite an impression on both of my sons." Paulette put her face in her hands and groaned. Elizabeth continued. "Anyway, I just wanted to check in on you and see how you are doing." She paused a moment then added. "Also it looks like I will have to produce you as soon as you are able to get up and around."

Paulette looked at Elizabeth in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"Based on the evidence and their inability to find you, the police suspect that your boyfriend did away with you." She shrugged. "I can't stop the investigation without a good reason, like, for instance, your living breathing body, so the best I can do is stall things until you are well enough to make an appearance. Also we must come up with a plausible story that doesn't involve these tunnels and my son." Elizabeth looked at her speculatively. "We could say that you were found by some street people that took you in and cared for you." She cocked her head and smiled. "We can take a hint from what happened to my son, and blame you not appearing earlier on a loss of memory."

"What will happen to . . . Frank, in the meantime." Paulette asked with a catch in her voice.

Elizabeth shrugged. "The police don't have enough evidence to arrest him yet but they are making things very uncomfortable for him. Last I heard, they have gone to question the secretary's husband. That should definitely produce some fallout." Elizabeth noticed the sadness and worry in Paulette's eyes. "Don't worry yourself about your ex. Based on all of the things that this investigation has already turned up about him, I would say that he deserves everything that is happening to him right now and then some. You're not the first one he has mistreated like this and it looks like you were lucky enough to get out of this before things had a chance to get violent."

"Violent?" Paulette looked up startled.

"The last girl wasn't so lucky." Elizabeth smiled and patted her shoulder. "You are well rid of him and even after the current charges are dropped, he will be far too busy with all his other problems to bother with you." Elizabeth gave her one last smile then left the chamber.

Paulette gazed at the tapestry covered opening for several seconds. It seemed that she had not known Frank as well as she had thought. Finally, she went back to reading the book and she was soon again lost in the world of Catherine and Vincent.

~ o ~

Paulette awoke with a start in a strange bed, interrupting strange dreams filled with lion-like creatures romancing female district attorneys. Then the memories came flooding back as she looked down at the hand written manuscript in her lap then up at the surrounding rock walls. It wasn't all a dream. Then she was aware of a personal need that required immediate attention. She carefully set aside the book and shifted her position.

Looking around she spotted the crutches beside the bed. She started to pull herself up on to the crutches then sat back down with a groan as a sharp pain shot through her wrists. This was really getting old. On her second attempt, she was successful in getting up onto the crutches. She managed to make it across the small chamber successfully but when she pulled the heavy tapestry aside, she lost her balance. As she shifted the left crutch trying to stabilize, she accidentally put too much weight on her broken leg. She cried out in pain as she went down and the tapestry fell back into place.

Two seconds later the tapestry moved aside and she became aware of boots as a voice asked. "Are you hurt?" She looked up to see an unfamiliar white maned lion-man as he crouched down next to her. "Let me help you up." He remarked as he took hold of her arms and gently lifted her to her feet.

Then she became aware of a white haired woman picking up her crutches. "Here you are, Dear." The woman remarked as she handed the crutches back to Paulette. The woman was looking closely at her and there was something familiar about her.

"My name is Vincent and this is my wife Catherine." The white haired lion-man introduced himself. "Do you need help getting to your destination?" Like Joseph and Charles, there was an irresistible quality about this one's voice.

"Uh, Uh, no." She was stunned by the realization that these two were the Catherine and Vincent that she had just been reading about. "I, ah, I think I can make it from here." She started off down the tunnel and they walked with her. "Uh, my name is Paulette." She finally managed to say.

"It's good to meet you." Catherine responded. "Well this is our stop." They stopped at another opening as Paulette continued towards her destination.

Paulette's mind kept going back to the two that she had just met and the story that she had been reading.

~ o ~

He awoke with a start. He had felt a presence. "Who's there?" He called out.

"It's just Catherine and Vincent." Responded a slightly familiar voice. "We didn't want to disturb you but we wanted to see how you were doing."

William pushed himself up into a sitting position. The pain was far less than the last time he had been awake. "Come in." The tapestry moved aside and William was confronted by two vaguely familiar visitors. "I know you don't I?" He remarked uncertainly. He could feel their _disappointment_ at his remark.

Vincent replied. "You are our grandson." They stopped next to his bed. "How much do you remember about us?" He asked.

"Just fragments . . . but a lot more came back, just now, when you called me grandson." William paused as more pieces continued tumbling into place. "You were the first . . . the first one like us." He shifted his position trying to ease the tension in his neck and squinted in concentration. "You had two sons like me didn't you?" At their smiling nod he continued. "One is my father, Charles, and the other is, is, Jacob, Uncle Jacob." He looked up for conformation. "I keep getting back memories in pieces. Something will trigger a memory and that will trigger another one . . . but there are still so many gaps, holes that I can't seem to fill." He shook his head. "It's so frustrating.

"Give it time, William." Catherine responded kindly, placing her hand on his shoulder and giving it a squeeze. "It's only been three days since the accident."

He looked up at them concerned. "What about the girl?"

"You talking about the pretty one that hit you?" Catherine asked with a hint of a smile.

"Uh, yea." He paused catching the _humor_ in both his grandparents. "I think I remember mother telling me that she was down here, in the tunnels. How is she doing?"

Vincent responded. "We just talked to her before we got here. She is worried about you. She asks, constantly, how you are doing."

~ o ~

Paulette was on her way back to her chamber when she reached the opening that Catherine and Vincent had stopped at. She was again thinking of that story as she gazed curiously through the uncovered opening. Inside the couple had their backs to her and appeared to be talking to someone in a bed against the far wall.

Catherine and Vincent both turned to look at her and then she saw the occupant of the bed. It had to be the one that she hit. Embarrassed she started to turn away when a new voice called out. "Wait." The new voice had that distinctive sound that she had come to associate with the leonine males. "Please come in. I want to meet you." Timidly, reluctantly, she entered the chamber, aware that the one in the bed, who must be William, was staring intently at her. She stopped halfway between them and the chamber opening. "You're the girl from the park, aren't you?" William remarked.

"Ah, yes. That was me." Paulette answered, uncertainly.

"Please. Come closer. I just wanted to see you . . . be sure that you're alright."

She took a few hesitant steps closer. "I'm doing OK, I guess." She paused. "Um, how are you doing?"

There was a moment's pause. "I seem to be getting better. I remember you. What happened to those thugs that were threatening you?"

She looked at him in surprise. "You scared them off." She replied. "You roared at them and they ran away." She paused looking at the ground. "Then you collapsed." She finished quietly.

"Well I'm glad you're OK." He responded. "Won't you come over and sit down for a while?"

She glanced at Vincent and Catherine then back at William. "I guess I can stay for a while." She had to admit that she wanted to see him, talk to him. Like Joseph, there was something about him that drew her in.

As she lowered herself, with a half suppressed groan, into one of the two chairs in the room, she noticed a knowing grin on the faces of both Catherine and Vincent. Catherine took the other chair and Vincent leaned against a convenient wall. She told them a little about herself and William told her a little about himself. Then, when she mentioned that she was reading the Brigit O'Donnell manuscript, the topic shifted to Catherine and Vincent's history. They filled her in on some of the details that were not included in the book.

After a while, Catherine and Vincent excused themselves and, with that knowing grin again showing, made their exit. Paulette and William continued to talk long after they left.

_**Continued in Part 5**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Traces / Memories _**_is sung by_**_ Classics IV _**  
**YouTube**_ = www . youtube __watch?v=gyxpQO0YYQo_


	5. Torn Between Two Lovers

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 5 : Torn Between Two Lovers**

After talking for a while Paulette and William ended up comparing injuries. Though his injuries had been more severe than hers, after three days he was in better overall shape than her. They became aware that it was close to dinnertime and they both decided that they were hungry right now and did not want to wait. William was able to pull himself up onto his crutches then, with his good arm, he helped her up to save strain on her damaged wrists. They stood there looking at each other for a second then they broke up laughing at themselves.

"I would say that we make quite a pair together, don't you think?" He remarked with a wink and a smile.

Paulette felt a shiver go through her at the way he had said pair. "Ah, I guess so." She responded. William's smile broadened, clearly displaying his fangs, and she realized that he had sensed her reactions to him just as Joseph had.

With his good arm, William pulled the tapestry aside and hooked it back out of the doorway. "After you my lady."

Paulette passed through the doorway and waited for William to pass through and join her. She had no idea where the community dining chamber might be. William joined her in the tunnel hallway then he placed his hand on her shoulder, sending a shiver up her spine, and pointed to the left. "This way to the dining chamber."

That direction took them past the chamber where she was staying and she pointed it out to him.

He noted the location and commented. "I will definitely have to commit that to memory." He grinned, showing the tips of his fangs, as he glanced at her. "That is a memory that I know I will retain."

As they continued through the tunnels, they encountered several people who greeted them cheerily and expressed their pleasure that William was doing well. They shortly came to a four-way junction where William stopped and began looking around uncertainly.

"William is something wrong?" Paulette asked a bit concerned at his confused expression.

After a few moments, he responded. "I know this is the way to the dining chamber but I can't remember which branch I should take at this point"

She placed her hand on his arm. "Oh, William this is all my fault. Your memory problems . . ."

"Non-sense!" He interrupted her and took her hand in his. "It was just an accident. Joseph told me about what happened to you that night." He grinned and squeezed her hand. "Besides, if you hadn't hit me we probably never would have met." She felt something warm go through her at his look, and then his eyes glinted with a very mischievous look. "And I would never have seen that outfit you were wearing." Paulette looked down and blushed hotly. She would have pulled her hand back but he had too firm a grip on it. "You looked very beautiful." He told her and she looked up into his smiling golden eyes. "And that is a memory that I treasure." He finished with a wink.

William paused and sniffed the air. "Ah-ha. This way." He pointed to the right and released her hand so they could continue.

They had gone about a dozen feet down the new direction when Joseph came running up behind them. "Paulette, there you are. I was coming to get you for dinner and found your chamber empty." He fell into step on her other side from William. "It's good to see you up and around old man." He remarked to his brother with a grin.

"You can't keep me down for long, little brother." William replied with a grin and an emphasis on the 'little'.

They reached an opening into a very large chamber that looked like an underground version of a high school lunchroom. She felt both of her companions put an arm across her back sending shivers up her spine. She glanced to either side to find them both looking intently back at her and grinning. "This way." They both remarked simultaneously while indicating the back of the chamber. She was hardly aware of the rest of the occupants as they escorted her to the back of the chamber where the buffet was being set up.

As they reached the buffet, she became aware of the mouth-watering aroma of the food. Her peculiarly unique situation was momentarily forgotten as her attention was focused on the food. It was brought back as she made her way to the nearest open spot, flanked by William and Joseph. Joseph carried her plate. At the table, William and Joseph took positions on either side of her.

A short time later, a very pretty blonde girl about their age came up and took the seat opposite William. She acknowledged William and, with a spark of suppressed humor in her eyes, turned her attention to Paulette. "Hello, my name is Clarissa. These two 'boys' are my brothers." She grinned.

"Ah, my name is Paulette." She responded. "It's nice to meet you."

"The pleasure is mine." Clarissa returned. "So what do you think about our little world down here?"

"It's so incredible, I keep asking myself if this place is really real or just a dream." Paulette replied.

"That must be especially true when you see some of the weirder inhabitants." Clarissa observed, starring at William.

William jumped in with, "Like little sister here." To which she stuck her tongue out at him, causing Paulette, William and Joseph to all laugh.

Paulette glanced at William then Joseph. "It does seem like something out of a fantasy story." She shook her head. "I keep thinking I'm going to wake up at any moment." Again, she glanced to either side. "Then I find myself hoping I don't wake up."

At that point, she looked up as Elizabeth and Charles approached the table. Elizabeth sat down opposite Paulette and Charles ended up across from Joseph. "It's good to see you both up and around." Elizabeth remarked. "Though I didn't expect it this soon."

"I, too, am surprised that both of you were up to getting out this quickly." Charles remarked. He was studying his sons very closely.

Elizabeth spoke up again. "Paulette, do you think you would be up to going back above tomorrow morning?" There was a half smile on her face. "I would like to put a stop to the criminal investigation surrounding your case as soon as possible. Frank has been through hell the last two days, not that he doesn't deserve it, and I would prefer that there be as little police involvement as possible in this."

Paulette thought for a minute. "I guess I'm up to it." She glanced around. "But I kinda hate to leave this place so soon." She looked back and forth at the two boys. "I've just begun to make some fascinating new friends down here."

Clarissa quickly covered a laugh as both boys glared at her. Elizabeth smiled. "Don't worry about that. You are one of us now. I'm sure William or Joseph will be happy to show you how to find your way back down here . . . in case you want to visit someone." She glanced at both of them. "I also think Teresa is going to want you to spend at least another day or two Below where she can check up on you and be sure you're up to going back to work." There was a hint of amusement in both her eyes and in her voice. "And down here I suspect that you will have plenty of help 'til you can get around easier." She glanced again at both of her sons, a half smile teasing the edges of her mouth and eyes.

Paulette blushed as she caught Elizabeth's meaning.

The rest of the dinner was pleasant. The conversation centered around Paulette and this very unusual family getting to know each other better. There was a lot of friendly verbal sparing between the two brothers. The undercurrent between William, Joseph and Paulette at times got thick enough to cut with a knife. Clarissa was not unaware of it, and engaged in some subtle teasing of her two brothers.

Several of the other tunnel inhabitants stopped by the table to see how William was doing and to meet the new girl. William quickly remembered each of them after they introduced themselves and by the end of dinner, he was beginning to remember them as soon as he saw them. Everyone was pleased that his memories were coming back.

About halfway through the meal another lion-man came up to the table. He had a darker reddish brown coloring and green eyes. He was accompanied by a pretty woman with similar hair and eye coloring. Charles introduced them as his brother, Jacob, and sister in law, Linda. They exchanged a few bits of news then the new arrivals went back to the buffet.

After a little over an hour Charles and Elizabeth grabbed up the dirty dishes and took them to a special place set aside for them then they all left the dining chamber. William and Joseph both insisted on escorting Paulette back to her chamber. They both hung around for a while and talked before wishing her a good night. As they all stood at her doorway, on impulse she kissed each of them on the cheek and thanked them for being there and making her time down here more pleasant.

~ o ~

As the two boys headed back to the their chamber, Joseph nudged William. "Trying to beat my time big brother?"

"Hey I saw her first up in the park." William retorted as he nudged back.

"Yea, and she reacted by knocking you down with her car." Joseph responded with another nudge.

"You're just interested in her because of what she was wearing that night." William returned the nudge.

"And you aren't?" Joseph replied incredulously.

"Well, we'll see which one she chooses. The handsome one or the kid." William remarked.

"May the best man win and no hard feelings when she chooses me." Joseph shot back.

~ o ~

"Well what do you think?" Elizabeth asked her husband as they prepared for bed.

"I think you look very sexy." Charles replied with a grin.

"No." She giggled. "I mean about that girl Paulette."

"I think she's very cute and has **very** interesting taste in clothes but she's not my type." He climbed into bed with her.

"Beast!" She smacked him on the chest. "You know what I mean. What do you think about her and our boys?"

"Oohh, that's what you mean." He chuckled. "I think we have the makings of a love triangle brewing." He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in close. "It's probably a good thing Peter is already taken or he'd be after her too."

"You don't think she's going to cause problems do you?" The thought worried her a bit.

Charles could sense the hint of _concern_ from her as she asked the question and thought a moment. "No. I don't think she's the type. Oh, she'll probably string them both along for a while until she settles on one of them. Right now, she is recovering from a rather nasty romantic situation and she finds herself being drawn to two very unusual individuals. She's feeling a bit lost and alone and the attention from both our son's is a very confusing situation for her. She is also surprised by the fact that she is attracted to them despite their appearance."

"Maybe, like me, she's attracted to them because of their appearance." She remarked with a shy grin.

He kissed her. "The fact that both our son's are equally attracted to her only makes a decision more difficult." He kissed her again. "Fortunately, both of our son's are very level headed individuals and they understand the situation. I doubt that they will let it come between them." His hand began to wander up her side. "Though I suspect Clarissa won't give them any peace for a while about it."

"We did manage to raise a group of pretty good kids, didn't we?" She replied. Then her thoughts were no longer on their children as Charles' actions became more intimate.

~ o ~

Paulette lay in bed, her mind in a whirl. At first, she had tried to read more of the manuscript but she just could not get her mind off of Joseph and William. She couldn't get over how strongly she was attracted to both of them. They were both so unusual even frightening in appearance yet that didn't matter to her. In fact, she realized that she thought they looked magnificent rather than frightening. She was also pretty sure that they were both attracted to her. What was she to do? How was she to pick one over the other? The last thing she wanted was to hurt either one of them.

The image of Frank and his secretary popped into her mind. With a flash of anger, she swore that she would never do anything like that to anyone else, especially William or Joseph.

As she began preparing for bed, she went back to wondering how she was to pick one of the brothers over the other. She would have to be careful not to mislead either one of them. Then she remembered that they both could sense her emotions. That meant that they both must already know how she felt. How could she possibly handle this situation? Then it hit her that the boys' father was probably also sensing her emotions. Oh God, that meant he knew everything as well. She was suddenly mortified. This was a totally impossible situation.

She collapsed onto her back with an exasperated sigh. Her mind was in such turmoil that it took a long time for her to finally fall asleep. Her dreams were full of images of her and them. Some of the more disturbing involved them coming to actual blows because of her.

~ o x o ~

Elizabeth woke up with a smile on her face. It had been weeks since she and Charles had slept below and last night had been wonderful. She glanced over at the large hours candle and did some rapid math in her head. Must be about 6:30. She grabbed her watch. [6:23]. She smiled, pretty close. She turned to face Charles and found his eyes open. They kissed and then she got out of bed, put on her thick warm tunnel style robe, grabbed the package sitting on the dresser and left the chamber.

Just as she reached the chamber where Paulette was staying, she heard Paulette call out. "No, don't. **DON'T!**" Elizabeth swept aside the tapestry and burst into the chamber to see Paulette sitting up in her bed looking very upset. Elizabeth got halfway across the small chamber when Joseph burst into the chamber, rushed over to Paulette and put his arms around her as she started to cry. Just as Elizabeth reached her bedside William burst into the room and, moving surprisingly quick despite his crutches and his injuries, reached her bed and sat on the other side of Paulette also putting his arms around her.

"Paulette dear, what's wrong?" Elizabeth asked worriedly.

Paulette looked up and seemed to realize that both brothers were in her bed holding her. She looked back and forth between them both then up at Elizabeth. "I . . . I had a nightmare." She sniffed, and again glanced at William and then at Joseph. "I . . . ah . . . Joseph and William were fighting . . . tearing each other apart and it was all my fault." She ended with a half sob.

They all stared at her for a second then, as the brothers looked at each other over her head, Elizabeth's worried look softened into a half smile. "My dear, I can assure you, that is not likely to happen." She glanced at the look on her sons' faces as they both glanced at her. "I don't think either one of them would ever do anything that might upset you."

Both boy's turned their gaze on Paulette in understanding.

"We may compete for you." William told her.

"But we won't fight over you." Joseph finished.

The nightmare was now rapidly fading from her mind as Paulette felt the comforting warmth of Joseph and William's arms wrapped protectively around her. Then she realized that she had one arm around each of them as well, drawing comfort from their closeness.

It was at this point that all four of them became conscious of the fact that Paulette was wearing the same provocative lingerie that she had been wearing on the night that they had brought her down Below. Joseph and William both became very self-conscious as they let go of her and backed off blushing. Paulette blushed all the way down as far as they could see as she tried, without success, to pull the tangled cover up about herself. Elizabeth cocked her head to one side, looking at her two flustered sons, and commented. "Don't you boys think that you should give the poor girl some privacy so she can get dressed?"

Both boys hastily cleared the room, mumbling apologies. Elizabeth watched them leave then looked back at Paulette as she finally managed to free the blanket and pull it up around herself. The look on Paulette's face was more than Elizabeth could stand and she couldn't help laughing. Paulette looked up at her in surprise. Elizabeth smiled at her. "Well, as attractive as that . . . outfit . . . may be, you might want to wear something a little bit more, ah, conservative when we go above to see the police." She handed over the package she had been carrying. "I knew that you didn't have anything appropriate for Above so I brought you this." She smiled. "I have to go get dressed myself and I'll be back to get you in about an hour. You already know where the bathing room is." As she turned and exited the small chamber, Elizabeth wondered if the fact that both boys had apparently sensed Paulette's distress and came running was going to be significant.

_**Continued in Part 6**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Torn Between Two Lovers _**_is sung by _**_Mary MacGregor_**  
**YouTube**_ = www . youtube __watch?v=Y3WMHBJu8Tg_


	6. Where The Boy’s Are

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 6 : Where The Boy's Are**

Paulette opened the package Elizabeth had given her. Inside she found a set of used but still in good shape casual street clothes. Throwing on her robe and gathering her bundle, she headed to the bathing chamber. There were already about a dozen women in the bathing pool when she got there. As she took off her robe, she heard several titters from those in the pool. She blushed as she quickly stripped off her very scandalous lingerie and approached the pool. One thing for sure she was going to get herself some different underwear as soon as possible.

Paulette set her crutches aside and awkwardly worked her way into the bathing pool. She was about halfway into the pool when she recognized a very familiar blonde woman and, losing her balance, fell the rest of the way in with a splash.

The 'very familiar blonde' woman had noticed Paulette's wide eyed look of surprise before she fell in and shifted over towards her. "Hello, my name is Emily." She held out her hand. "And I suspect you are Paulette."

Paulette was astonished. "Ah, Emily Hanson . . . the supermodel?" She managed to squeak out. Belatedly she accepted the woman's hand. She heard a few chuckles from the other women in the pool.

"I'm afraid so, though now it would be more accurate to call me Emily Chandler-Wells." There was a merry twinkle in her eyes. I just recently got myself married to Devin."

Paulette stared at Emily, stunned. "Um, ah pleased to meet you." Then it hit her. "The Halloween Beauty and the Beast Fashion show." Just a year ago, last Halloween there had been that big fashion show in Central Park. It had been staged as a Beauty and the Beast wedding and she clearly remembered the pictures of the wedding ceremony itself. All of the male models, including the groom, had looked like Joseph and William. "The groom was real? The wedding was real?"

Several of the girls, including Emily, laughed at her expression. "Yes, it was a real wedding ceremony." Emily replied.

"But . . . how?" Paulette inquired, incredulous.

"Actually it was a lot easier than you might think." Emily grinned. "There was that big revival of the whole Beauty and the Beast thing last year after the live action remake of that old Disney movie and that other movie based on Brigit O'Donnell's The Hidden Kingdom both came out at around the same time. Over half of the spring lines were based around that theme. I just suggested to the designer, Pierre, that he do his fashion show in Central Park and base it on the wedding scene from Brigit's book. Pierre loved the idea. The only hard part was hiding the fact that 'The Beasts' were real, from the rest of the crew. There were a couple of close calls but we pulled it off. The real trick will be keeping our marriage secret, especially when I get pregnant." She finished with a grin.

Another woman with bright red hair approached them. "Hello. You must be Paulette, my name is Cherry."

Paulette glanced back and forth between the two women. "How does everyone know who I am?"

Emily responded. "That's not too hard. You're new here and your injuries are a dead giveaway."

Cherry chuckled as she added. "And that lingerie you were wearing has become legendary."

Another dark haired woman laughed. "Everyone has heard about how both Joseph and William have been panting after you ever since they saw you in it."

Cherry laughed. "Yea, I've even considering borrowing it to see if I can entice Peter."

Several of the women giggled over that then the dark haired woman jumped in. "Heck, Cherry, all you have to do to entice Peter is be in the same room with him." This caused Cherry to turn almost as red as her hair.

Despite the embarrassing discussion of her choice of underwear, Paulette soon found herself accepted in their company and thoroughly enjoying herself. Eventually she reluctantly dragged herself away from them so she would have time to get dressed and be ready when Elizabeth came to get her.

~ o ~

As Paulette and Elizabeth exited the elevator on the floor occupied by the District Attorney's offices, Elizabeth noticed that the detective on Frank's case was waiting by her private office. He was pacing and appeared to be unhappy about something. She led Paulette over to a bench in the small waiting area. "Wait right here. I may have to deal with something first. I will come and get you as soon as I'm ready." She then went to her office.

"Good morning Detective." She greeted him pleasantly as she approached. "Please come on into my office." She reached past him, opened her office door, and indicated that he should precede her. "What may I do for you today?" She asked as she sat on the corner of her desk.

"It looks like we may have a problem with the Paulette Gibson disappearance case." He remarked glumly.

"What kind of problem?" She asked with a mixture of curiosity and worry.

"There's been a new wrinkle muddying the waters." The detective replied as he plopped down into the loveseat against the wall. "Word has come out that some gang members spotted the victim in the park. When we questioned one of them he said that she was attacked by the Creature of Central Park." He blew out his breath gustily. "Frank's lawyers are already all over it, claiming that it proves that he had nothing to do with her disappearance."

"Let me get this straight. Frank Mannford's lawyers are claiming that he is innocent because she was really carried off by the Creature of Central Park." She cocked her head at the detective. "And they really expect anyone to buy that line?" She shook her head in disbelief.

The detective shook his head. "They're not actually claiming that specifically. They are claiming that she was taken by someone else that was already in the park where she crashed and that Frank looks nothing like the Central Park Creature. They are also floating the possibility that it was the members of the gang that made off with her and are just trying to shift the blame. They are setting themselves up for a reasonable doubt defense. His lawyers are pretty sharp and they might be able to pull it off." He smacked his fist into his other hand. "I hate it when they get off under a smokescreen of legal trickery."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Well all their legal tricks will have absolutely no effect on the case. They are a waste of time and Frank's money."

The detective looked up at her intently. "Why do you say that? Do you know something I don't?"

"I know where Paulette Gibson is." She replied with a grin.

He looked at her startled. "Where is she?"

"She's sitting over by the elevators. I found her late last night and brought her in this morning." Elizabeth replied.

"Where has she been?" He asked.

"As best as I can understand, she was found by a group of street people near the scene of the wreck and they took her in and cared for her. She was pretty badly hurt." She shrugged. "The details are still vague. I brought her in so she could give a statement. She did tell me that for a while she didn't even know who she was."

"Amnesia? That's all we need. We still don't know if her . . . boyfriend had anything to do with it." He shook his head. "Well let's talk to her and see what she has to say."

"She's been through a rough time of it. I'll bring her in here and we can talk to her. It will be a lot less stressful for her than the interrogation rooms." She stood up and exited the office.

When she fetched Paulette from the waiting area, she gave her a very quick synopsis of what the detective had told her. When they got back to the office the detective was sitting on the edge of Elizabeth's desk. Elizabeth sat Paulette on the loveseat and sat down next to her.

"Now tell us in your own words what happened to you." Elizabeth told her. "Just take your time."

Paulette gave a pretty accurate account of what happened up to the wreck. There she told them that she had gotten out of the car to check on the damage when the three gang members approached. Then she said that a large guy in a hooded cloak showed up and scared the gang members off. She stated that she thought she blacked out at that point and woke up in some abandoned building with no memory of anything before the accident. She told him that she had started getting her memory back yesterday morning. A few hours later Elizabeth had showed up and took Paulette home with her for the night.

The detective thought about her story for a few seconds then looked at Elizabeth. "So how did you end up finding her?"

"When she finally remembered her name, the people that took her in, contacted me. They knew that I was looking for information on someone by that name." Elizabeth smiled. "I went out to fetch her right away and brought her in this morning to get her statement." She shrugged. "Much as I hate to admit it, there just isn't anything here that we can charge Frank Mannford with."

The detective stood up with a sigh. "It's a shame we can't arrest him for being a total jerk." He shook his head. "If you can get her statement to me I'll close the case." He shook his head muttering to himself as he left her office.

Elizabeth turned to Paulette with a smile. "Well that's taken care of. I'll get one of the interns to take down your statement and then we can go by your apartment to pick up a few things."

~ o ~

Elizabeth followed Paulette into her little apartment. It was small but it was neat and she thought Paulette had done a good job of making the most of the inexpensive furnishings. "This is a very nice looking little place you have." She commented.

"Thank you." Paulette replied.

"Well let's get a few things . . ." There was a twinkle of humor in Elizabeth's eyes as she added, ". . . like underwear . . ." She turned slightly more serious. ". . . and I'll take you back Below. Then I'll contact your work and tell them that you are OK but you will be under a doctor's care for a few more days." Elizabeth was now all business like. "What do you need?"

"Now that I'm home it seems silly to take up your time hauling me back down there. I can rest just as well here and I won't be putting you out." Paulette remarked a bit wistfully.

Elizabeth stood before her, hands planted on her hips. "Non-sense, you can't possibly get as good of care up here. Down there you have a doctor just down the hall that makes house calls. A good book that I noticed you haven't finished yet and two healthy, though a bit unusual looking, young men falling all over themselves to be of help to you. What more can you want?" She grinned. "Besides, William and Joseph would both have a fit if I didn't bring you back and I suspect that you would rather be where the boys are, anyway."

What Elizabeth did not say was that she was also worried that Paulette might be in some danger from her ex-boyfriend. There were comments, that the police had gotten from his neighbors, that suggested that it was a possibility. She also did not want her boys having to come, Above, to Paulette's rescue if she did get into trouble.

Paulette looked at Elizabeth in surprise for a moment. "Ah . . . Uh . . ."

"Now, do you have an overnight bag?" Elizabeth asked her. Paulette pointed to the front closet. Elizabeth fished out Paulette's small overnight case, set it on her bed and headed over to the bedroom closet. "Come over here and pick out what you wish to bring with you." She waited while Paulette got back to her feet and made her way over. "You probably should take enough for at least two or three days and be sure to keep in mind the temperature and humidity Below when you choose what to take."

As Paulette carefully selected casual clothes that would be appropriate, Elizabeth quickly and efficiently packed them away in the small suitcase. Next, they picked out the small personal items that she might need and packed them. Then Elizabeth shut the case and picked it up then faced Paulette with a 'no non-sense, that's that' look. "Well let's get going before the boys start worrying that you might not be coming back." Then she headed for the door with Paulette trailing bemusedly after her. There was something about Elizabeth's straight-up no non-sense attitude that reminded Paulette of her own mother.

~ o ~

As they climbed into the taxi Elizabeth spoke to the driver. "Take us to the north Central Park tunnel entrance, Carl." Paulette glanced at the driver then looked at Elizabeth in surprise. Elizabeth smiled back at her. "Carl is one of five cab drivers that know about us. In fact he grew up in the tunnels." She chuckled. "If Cherry gets her way, there may soon be six cab driver's in the know."

After a while Paulette spoke up. "Elizabeth, what am I going to do about William and Joseph?"

Elizabeth smiled at her. "Spend time with them, get to know them and just be honest and open with them. You know that they will be totally aware of how you feel. Then if you decide on one of them, let them know. Though they may know your decision before you do." Her grin widened. "In the meantime enjoy the attention." She chuckled. "A little competition will do them some good."

Paulette responded. "I like them both very much and I just don't want to do anything to hurt either one."

"In that case the competition will be that much more . . . interesting." Elizabeth remarked. "Just play it straight with them and everything will be fine."

~ o ~

William and Joseph gazed at each other over the table while they worked on their breakfast and engaged in their debate.

"I saw her first." William advanced.

"But I got to know her first." Joseph retorted.

"That's only cause I was unconscious." He pointed his fork at Joseph. "You took an unfair advantage."

"Hey, all's fair in love and war." Joseph shot back. "And this is a war for love."

"I'm closer to her age." William shot back. "Making me a better match."

"Yea, but I'm the better looking." Joseph rebutted, pointing to the crutches. "All you have going is the sympathy ploy."

"You're delusional." William returned fire.

"I'm delusional? She'll be lucky if you don't forget her by next week." Joseph grinned. Then after a moment's pause he got just a bit more serious. "So, what do you think?"

"It's a toss up. Right now she's torn. She likes us both and she doesn't know what to do about it." William observed.

"So she needs to get to know us better, so she can pick me." Joseph responded.

"Then we'll just have to give her the time and space she needs to get to know us better. Then she can pick me." William responded.

"Dream on old man."

"Back at you kid."

"Sounds like a very deep discussion." Charles remarked as he came up to them. "What's the subject?"

"Paulette." They both replied simultaneously.

"Ah, I thought so." He smiled as he sat down. "Just take it easy with her. She has had a very rough week. She is still a little bit fragile and she has a tendency to wear her heart on her sleeve." He admonished his sons. "Remember, Paulette's emotions are very strong and run very deep. She can easily end up falling in way over her head."

"We know that." Joseph replied. "And we will be careful."

"We would never do anything to hurt her." William responded.

"I know you won't. Just give her a few days before you two start seriously competing." Charles told them.

_**Continued in Part 7**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Where the Boys Are _**_is sung by _**_Connie Francis_**  
**YouTube = **_www . youtube watch?v=bHZaFbwUHkc&feature=related_


	7. Then He Kissed Me

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 7 : Then He Kissed Me**

Paulette was enjoying a delicious hot lunch and feeling pretty proud of herself. She had managed to make her way from her chamber to the dining chamber without any help or guidance from anyone else. Although it had been nice having the boys bring her breakfast in bed this morning, she really felt the need to get up and around on her own.

She chuckled as she realized how her perceptions had changed in the last few days. The chamber she was staying in felt as familiar to her as her own little apartment in the Bronx. William and Joseph reminded her so much of the boys she had gone to high school with and the other tunnel dwellers felt like familiar neighbors to her. It was amazing how much this subterranean community had come to feel like home to her. Her reverie was interrupted when William and Joseph came up and plopped themselves down on either side of her.

"So this is where you disappeared to." William remarked.

"We were afraid you had wandered off and gotten lost." Joseph added.

"Hey I'm not exactly a helpless child here." She retorted. "I can get around on my own."

"Did you hear that big brother? She doesn't need us any more." Joseph remarked to his brother over her head.

"This is a terrible development, little brother." William replied, also over her head. "I think my feelings are hurt."

"Revolting turn of events." Joseph shot back. "What are we to do?"

"We could break her other leg. Then she'd need us again." William suggested.

"Hey now, there will be no leg breaking around here." Paulette jumped in. "Besides I didn't say I didn't need you. I just said I wasn't helpless." She glanced back and forth between them. "I will always enjoy having you guys around."

"What do you say little brother, should we go ahead and take her to the concert anyway?" William asked his brother.

"I think we can take her after all." Joseph replied grinning. "I feel very forgiving today."

"Excuse me." Paulette glanced from one to the other. "Concert?" She inquired.

"There's a concert in the park at the band shell this evening." William responded. "Would you like to go with us?"

"Of course, I would love to go with you both." She looked at them with a puzzled expression. "But won't it cause a bit of a commotion when you two show up in the middle of that crowd?"

"Ah, ha, she's smarter than we thought." Joseph replied winking. "It aught to be interesting."

"Should make for quite an adventure." William agreed with a chuckle.

The two of them dug into their meals and refused to give up any more information about the proposed concert. They did say that the concert was supposed to start around six o'clock but that was all they would say. After lunch they both escorted her around the home tunnels helping her get familiar with the locations of the important chambers.

They stopped at the infirmary and Doctor Teresa checked over both Paulette and William. Paulette was healing well and there appeared to be no complications. Teresa told her that she should be able to return to work on Monday. William was also healing quite well. There were still a few holes in his memory but they were slowly being filled in.

~ o ~

Joseph and William were leading Paulette along a route that she was not familiar with. She knew from Brigit's book that Catherine and Vincent had a hidden place from which they had often listened to concerts in the park and she suspected that was where the two of them were taking her. She noticed that the brick walled tunnels had given way to round concrete drainage pipes but there was no sign of water or debris in this particular pipe. They entered an eight foot by six foot rectangular junction and stopped. She noticed that the floor was covered with padded quilts and there was a pile of pillows stacked against one wall. There was a pile of folded blankets against the opposite wall. Daylight was streaming down through a large grill overhead. As she glanced around she became aware of the sounds of a large number of people talking and milling about coming from overhead.

William pointed to a three foot high ledge along one wall and suggested. "Go ahead and take a look."

With Joseph's help she got up on the ledge and found that she could see out of a four inch wide slit that ran all the way around the top edge of the chamber. They were ten feet from the stage at one end of the band shell. She ducked down when a pair of legs passed by less than a foot in front of her nose.

Joseph helped her get back down. He and William then picked up a charcoal gray blanket and began attaching it to hooks that ran around the wall of the chamber just below the slit she had been looking out of. The weave of the blanket was so coarse that she could almost see right through it.

"From above it will look like there is just a dark hole beyond that grate." William informed her. "We can see right through it during the daylight and it has no effect on the sound quality."

They spent the next few minutes getting the blankets and pillows arranged to their satisfaction while the sounds of the orchestra tuning up drifted down from the grate above. Soon the music began. The concert was made up of classical music played in a contemporary style. Paulette settled in cozily nestled between the two brothers and let the lovely music wash over her. The brothers soon became just as engrossed in Paulette's emotional response to the music as the music itself.

~ o ~

They were quietly discussing the music during the intermission when a preteen, that Paulette had seen a few times in the tunnels, trotted in carrying a load of junk food that had to have come from the vendors at the band shell. "Oscar may disagree but this is the only appropriate meal for evenings at the concert." Remarked William as he took the food from the young boy.

"Oscar?" Paulette looked at him curiously.

"The cook from Below." Joseph informed her. "Oscar and Jackie cook all of the food for us below. Oscar learned his craft directly from William and took over when William died."

"William?" She inquired as she looked curiously at William.

"Old William was the original cook for the tunnel community back when Vincent and Catherine met. He passed away when I was very young. Mother and Father were both very fond of Old William and they named me after him." William elaborated.

The concert started back up and they quietly ate their meal as they listened to the music. Late in the concert, during a particularly romantic passage, she was listening with her eyes closed. She was letting the romantic emotions the music evoked flow through her and thinking about William and Joseph when she felt simultaneous soft kisses on each cheek. She felt a delighted shiver run up her spine, then she opened her eyes to see both of them gazing at her with a soft shimmer in their eyes. She realized that they had been feeling her emotional reactions to the music and had responded to it. She put her arm around each of them and gave each a return kiss on their cheeks.

~ o ~

That night she lay in bed thinking about the concert and the two that had taken her. She liked them both very much and she'd had a wonderful time. She began wondering just how far things were going to develop in their relationship. She thought about herself and one of them together in a more serious, even sexual, relationship and found that she really had no problem with the idea. That was certainly a different reaction than she might have had to such an idea a week ago.

~ o x o ~

It was Saturday, as near as she could tell. "Hi, are you ready for lunch?" Joseph called from her doorway.

Paulette looked up from the manuscript. "Hello Joseph. Come in." She placed the cord across the page and closed the book. "Now that you mention it, I'm starved. I didn't get any breakfast this morning."

"I've fixed up a little picnic." Joseph held up a basket. "Would you like to come have lunch with me?"

"I would love to." She replied as she reached for her crutches. Joseph sprang forward to aid her and she thanked him. Once she was balanced and stable she looked at him. "Where are we going?" She asked.

"I thought I'd take you to the Whispering Gallery for lunch." He answered as he indicated for her to precede him out of the chamber. After about twenty minutes they entered a large break in the rock. Before her was an opening with an extremely deep pit. The bottom was hidden somewhere below a mist that started about twenty feet down. The only way across the pit was a wood and rope bridge that looked like it could barely support it's own weight, much less the weight of a person. There was a large alcove on the other side of the bride and a ledge that led to another tunnel. The top of this opening was hidden in the darkness above.

As Joseph approached the bridge Paulette held back. "Are you sure that thing is safe?" She asked him dubiously. "It looks like it could break at any minute."

Joseph smiled back at her. "It's perfectly safe. The original bridge that was here did collapse about forty years ago. A young girl named Naomi was playing on it when it broke. She got tangled in the ropes and was left dangling on the end of the broken bridge until Vincent came looking for her and rescued her. Right after that Mouse and Jamie built this bridge to replace it. It looks just like the original except the ropes have a steel cable core and the boards are made out of a very tough composite material that Elliot Burch supplied them with. It looks like the original but you could drive a truck across it, if it was narrow enough to fit."

He took her hand and led her onto the bridge. As she looked at the mist below she asked him. "How deep is that?"

He looked down. "No one knows." He looked at her. I dropped a torch down there once. I never heard it hit bottom." He looked back down. "Rumor has it that the pit is bottomless. They say that Mouse tried to climb down the side once and gave up after going down about a thousand feet."

"Who is Mouse?" She asked.

"He was an engineering genus that used to live down here. He designed most of the hidden access doors to the surface. He and Jamie designed and helped build the Hawaiian bridge project that joined all the islands together? He was killed about eight years ago when a water main he was working on in the Sahara burst." Joseph responded.

Paulette had noticed a constant whispering sound mixed with echoes of their own voices since they had entered this area and she asked him about it. He stopped in the middle of the bridge and told her to be very quiet then he called out loudly. The echoes of his call continued for a very long time. Just as she was wondering if it would ever end, the echoes finally died away leaving only the constant whispering sound. When she opened her mouth to speak he held a finger up to his lips then gently nudged her a little to the left. Now she could hear two people talking in a language that sounded very oriental to her. He then nudged her back a little and she was suddenly hearing a group of children singing. He moved her further along the bridge and she heard a large number of people all talking at once. Another move and she heard children laughing.

Eventually he drew her to the alcove on the other side of the bridge. There was a ledge in the alcove that was just the right height to sit on. They sat down and opened the basket of food. Inside the alcove the voices and sounds seemed to come and go randomly and Paulette found it fascinating listening to these snatches of life from the surface as they ate lunch.

After the remains of the meal had been packed away they talked for a while. She found herself gazing into his startlingly blue eyes and felt a shiver run through her. Then he leaned in and gave her a quick kiss. She glanced down shyly for a moment. It had caught her by surprise but she had liked it, then she looked back up and returned the kiss. He placed his arms around her and soon they were totally involved with each other.

~ o ~

That evening Joseph and William both showed up at her little chamber to escort her to dinner. There was the usual good natured teasing between Joseph and William at the table. From some of his comments, it was obvious that William knew of the recent development in her relationship with Joseph. Other than that nothing seemed to have changed; they still teased each other about which of them she would end up choosing and she insisted that she was an independent woman and they were all just friends. But the competition for her was, obviously, still ongoing. Clarissa insisted that Paulette should keep them both on the hook as long as they continued to take the bait.

About halfway through the meal, Cherry came up and joined them. She was accompanied by a new leonine male that Paulette didn't know. Cherry introduced him as Joseph and William's older brother, Peter. Peter announced that he and Cherry had just become engaged and that became the main topic of conversation for the rest of the dinner.

After dinner Peter and Cherry said they were heading up to the brownstone to tell Charles and Elizabeth the good news. Joseph was dragged off by several children for some obscure project that he had promised to help them with. William stayed with Paulette and offered to accompany her when she got up to leave the dining chamber.

As they passed through the tunnels William led her off in a new direction. "There's something I wanted to show you." He told her. After a short while they entered a medium sized chamber that was dominated by a pool that had a smooth highly reflective surface. She could see a myriad of stars reflected from the surface as well as the other side of the chamber. "This is the mirror pool." He told her.

"Where do the stars come from?" She asked.

"Don't know. It's some kind of optical effect." He replied.

William helped her settle to the ground next to the pool then settled down next to her. He placed his crutches next to hers then they leaned over and looked at their reflections in the pool.

"I can't see the bottom." She remarked. "All I see are the reflections." She looked at him.

"That's because it is so deep." He replied. "This pool is at least a hundred feet deep."

She looked back down at their reflections. Soon she found herself gazing into the golden eyes of William's reflection and she felt the heat rising in her cheeks. They both looked up at each other at the same time and then they leaned into each other and kissed. They were both quickly lost in each other.

~ o ~

Paulette stood in her chamber, staring at the tapestry across her doorway, for several minutes after William had brought her back from the mirror pool. Her mind was in a whirl. Things had shifted dramatically in her relationship with both William and Joseph. In less than a week things had gone from first scary encounter to innocent flirtation to something much more serious. She really cared a great deal about both of them and she didn't know what to do about it. She knew that she was going to have to be very careful how she handled this situation and not to let things get out of hand. She didn't know if she was up to dealing with this type of three way dance. At least there was no deception involved. Both William and Joseph knew exactly where things stood between the three of them.

With a gusty sigh she threw herself onto her bed. How had she gotten herself into this situation? She had to admit that it was flattering to have the two of them vying for her attention but there were so many pitfalls.

As she lay there she began thinking about the kisses. William and Joseph were so much alike in the unique way it felt to kiss them and in the way they responded to her. Yet despite their similarities there was an indefinable difference. Though she couldn't explain it, she was sure she could tell which one she was kissing if she were blindfolded. She tried to compare her feelings for each of them and found that she just couldn't seem to choose between them.

~ o x o ~

Paulette spent most of Sunday taking it easy and reading the story of Catherine and Vincent. Lunch and dinner both were interesting affairs. William and Joseph teased each other about the new status of their relationship with her. The teasing was subtly more intense though still friendly and filled with humor. Clarissa was highly amused by the whole thing and wasted no opportunity to give both her brothers a hard time about it. Paulette was just trying to sort out her own feelings about the very confusing situation she now found herself in.

_**Continued in Part 8**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Then He Kissed Me _**_is sung by_**_ The Crystals _**  
**YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?v=__cE_jOD2Fxvs (or) www . youtube watch?v=Nly-bfguf4k&feature=related_


	8. Summer Nights

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 8 : Summer Nights**

Paulette awoke to the sound of Elizabeth's voice calling from outside her chamber. It was Monday morning and today she would be returning to her old life in the surface world. She responded to Elizabeth's query then got herself ready for the day. A short time later she met Elizabeth in the dining chamber for breakfast and together they headed to the surface.

As they reached the top of the metal stairs, Elizabeth noticed her distracted demeanor. "What's bothering you Paulette?"

Paulette gazed down a moment. "I'll be glad to get back to my life but I really hate to leave this place." She responded.

"You may be leaving the tunnels but the tunnels will always be a part of you from now on and you are always welcome to come back from time to time." She looked at Paulette for a couple of moments then broke into a knowing smile. "In fact, I suspect that you will probably be spending quite a bit of time Below." There was another pause then Elizabeth continued. "But there is something else bothering you."

For several seconds the only sound was the clack sound that came from Paulette's crutches. Finally she responded. "It's William and Joseph." A short pause. "Things have . . . changed since Saturday and I'm not sure how I should handle it."

"So I heard." Elizabeth replied. At Paulette's surprised look she chuckled. "It's pretty hard to keep secrets when you live among a bunch of empaths." She gazed ahead down the tunnel. "So far you have done nothing wrong and the boys understand the way things are." She looked back at Paulette. "You have two fine young men interested in you. Enjoy it."

They came up into an elegantly furnished parlor. As Paulette gazed around at the lovely room dominated by a beautiful spiral staircase, Elizabeth went over to an antique landline telephone and made a quick call. She came back over. "I just called a cab for you. Your car is in the repair shop and should be ready by the end of the week; I've already talked to your insurance company."

"Thank-you." Paulette responded a bit distractedly as she gazed around at the elegant parlor. "Is this your place?"

"It originally belonged to Catherine and Vincent but they gave it to us when Catherine retired and they moved Below." She looked around a moment. "I spent a lot of my childhood here. My parents were very close friends with them. Charles and I were born within days of each other and practically grew up together." She gazed over at a picture of a handsome couple sitting on the fireplace mantle. "My mother grew up in the tunnels and you know about my father, Joe Maxwell." There was the sound of a car horn outside. "That's your taxi. Better hurry, you don't want to be late your first day back at work."

~ o x o ~

It had been five days since Paulette had returned to her apartment and work. Everybody had been happy to see her back at work and she had easily slipped back into the routine. She entered her apartment with a quiet sigh after a very long, late, busy Friday at work. Somehow after the constant friendly bustle of the tunnels, her little apartment seemed so lonely and quiet.

She plopped herself down into her overstuffed chair, set her crutches on the floor beside the chair and began opening the days mail. Bills, advertisements and a letter from her mother in Nebraska. Her father had been a soldier and died in battle when she was four. She opened the letter and began to read. It was the usual family gossip. She was startled by a tapping at her fourth floor window. Cautiously she approached the window and looked out onto the dark fire escape. It was Joseph.

Adjusting her stance on her crutches, she tried to open the window. It didn't budge. She chided herself as she checked the latch then she tried again. Still nothing. The window appeared to be stuck and her wrists were still too weak and painful to be able to apply much force. She was getting frustrated. Joseph motioned that she should try again. This time he dug his claws into the joint between the window and the sill and pulled up. The window shot up so fast that it banged at the top and scared her half to death.

"What are you doing out there?" She asked him as soon as she recovered her senses and her balance. "Get in here before someone sees you." She backed away from the window to let him in.

He swung himself through the open window and turned to face her in one fluidly graceful movement. "I came by to see if you would be coming Below this weekend."

She looked at him in surprise. "Below?" She hadn't been planning to go Below though the idea did appeal to her.

"Sure." He responded. "Your chamber is still there with all your stuff that you left behind. I assumed that meant that you would be coming back soon."

"I hadn't really thought about it." She paused a moment. "But, to be honest, I already miss the tunnels." She made a decision. "Do you think they would mind if I just came below right now?"

"That would be great." Joseph grinned. "You know how to get to the north Central Park entrance don't you?" He asked.

"That's the only one I do know . . . Besides the one in your home, that is." She replied.

"Good. Do you need any help packing or carrying anything?" He asked.

"No. I don't think so. I think I left most of what I need below in my chamber." She blinked at the realization of what she had just said.

Joseph smiled at her. "OK. I'll meet you at the park entrance." He turned toward the window but she stopped him and pulled him back around. She kissed him and he returned it. Then he exited the window and was gone. Paulette approached the window and stared out it for several seconds but he had disappeared. She closed the window then called for a taxi. After thinking about it she picked out a few items that she wanted to take below with her, especially if she was going to be spending much time there, and packed them in a small plastic bag since she had left her suitcase in the chamber Below. All the while she thought about her words, 'my chamber'.

The phone rang to announce the arrival of the taxi. She hurried down as quickly as her crutches allowed and hopped into the cab. She told the driver to take her to 97th Street and East Drive in Central Park. The driver looked at her like he wasn't too sure about her, shrugged his shoulders and took off. After about ten minutes they arrived at her destination. The driver looked around at the darkened park. "Lady, are you sure you want to be let out here?" He asked worriedly. "This area doesn't look all that safe to me." He turned to face her. "I've heard that there has been increased gang activity in the park lately."

She smiled at him. "You don't need to worry about me. I'll be just fine. A friend is meeting me here."

"Do you want me to stay with you 'til your friend arrives." He offered.

"There's really no need. I won't have to wait long." She handed him the fare and climbed out of the cab, then she turned around. "But thank you for your concern." She handed him a little extra tip and started down the grassy slope towards where she knew the drainage culvert was located.

Being on crutches made the slope a little bit difficult to negotiate, slowing her down, but she eventually made it to the flat area at the bottom of the slope. When she looked back up she noticed that the taxi had not moved. She went about another ten feet when she heard a sound off to the left. She glanced over to see four rather rough looking individuals approaching from that direction. They apparently became aware of her at the same time. She tried to quicken her pace but was hampered by her crutches and the four thugs had soon moved to cut her off. One of them was swinging a chain and two others pulled out knives. She was beginning to feel the edges of panic when she became aware of a sound from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder to see the taxi driver approaching, carrying a tire iron.

The driver came right up to her left side then faced the four thugs. "I told you it was dangerous out here." He commented quietly to her. The thugs responded by spreading out until they had Paulette and the driver surrounded, then slowly moved in on them. The driver swung his tire iron a couple of times to make them keep their distance. The quiet of the park was suddenly shattered by a lion like roar that caused everyone but Paulette to jump in surprise and look around fearfully. "What was that?" The driver asked nervously. The roar sounded again. This time it had obviously come from off to Paulette's right and everyone became aware of a large dark figure standing just within a thick stand of trees. The four thugs looked at each other nervously as the hooded apparition took a step toward them. As the apparition suddenly roared again and took several more quick steps forward, its claws raised, the hood fell back revealing a fierce leonine visage. With frightened squawks the thugs broke and ran. The cab driver shifted around to Paulette's other side, placing himself between her and the monster, while he continued brandishing the tire iron. "Run for the cab." He ordered over his shoulder. "I'll hold it off as long as I can."

Paulette placed her hand on the driver's shoulder as the creature lowered its claws. "I told you I was meeting a friend. I am in no danger." She stepped around the stunned driver and advanced to meet Joseph halfway. They embraced. She faced the driver who was still standing there looking at them both in amazed surprise. "I'm perfectly fine now, but thank you for watching out for me." After a few moments the driver finally turned and headed back to his taxi. All the way back he kept glancing back at them. As he opened his cab door, he paused and gazed back at her one more time and she waved to him, then he got in and drove away.

She giggled as she thought about the look on the cab driver's face. Joseph took the plastic bag from her and he led her to the storm drain entrance. He made sure she knew how to work the secret door then they entered the tunnel.

When they arrived at her chamber it was just as she had left it, including the Brigit O'Donnell manuscript on the low table by the bed. She placed the extra things that she had brought with her in the old chest of drawers. Joseph kissed her goodnight and left her to settle in. She read several more chapters of the manuscript before going to sleep.

All weekend long she stayed Below. She became closer to the other tunnel denizens and pitched in to help whenever she could. The rest of the time she spent with one or both of the brothers. William was already able to get around using just a cane and Joseph teased him that he wasn't going to be able to use the sympathy ploy much longer. Joseph suggested that he could break the other leg and Clarissa said that she could get Paulette to run into him again if it would help.

Early Monday morning Paulette got dressed in one of the two sets of business attire she had brought down. William had told her that he had sent a message to a helper, to have a taxi waiting for her in the park.

When she reached the surface the sun was already up and a taxi was sitting right were she had been dropped off Friday night. As she entered the cab she realized that it was the same driver from Friday night. "You!" She remarked in surprise.

"So it was you that wanted a taxi." The driver remarked with a grin. "When I heard about the pickup in the park I had to take it, just to see if it was you." He stared at her for a second. "What I saw Friday night was real also, wasn't it?"

She gazed at him for a second. "Yes he was real, but you can't tell anyone." She smiled at him. "He's a secret."

"I certainly won't tell anyone." He shook his head. "No one would believe me." He laughed. There was a quality of joy to his laughter. "And to think I used to make fun of my little brother for believing in the Creature of Central Park." He smiled back at her. "My name is Andy by the way." There was an almost indefinable quality of good humor in his voice

"Pleased to meet you Andy. My name is Paulette." She replied then she gave him the address of the publishing company where she worked. Andy nodded to her with a grin and pulled out into the traffic.

When they arrived Andy helped her out of the taxi and handed her crutches to her. "You have a good day and anytime you need a taxi to the park, just ask for Andy." He told her with a smile and a wink, and then he got back in and drove off.

~ o x o ~

On Wednesday she got a note from William inviting her to meet him in the park in front of the brownstone after dark. When she arrived she found him waiting just inside the park. They strolled leisurely through the nearly deserted park for a couple of hours, talking and occasionally exchanging kisses and holding hands as he pointed out some of the more interesting sights in the park after dark. They ended up at the familiar tunnel entrance and, at his invitation, she ended up spending the night in her chamber Below.

The next morning Paulette arrived at the surface to find Andy waiting for her. Someone had gotten a message to him to meet her here. On the way to work Andy amused her with the latest tales going around about that old urban legend of the Creature of Central Park. It seemed that some street gang members were supposed to have had a few run ins with a certain creature in the Central Park area and now some of the gangs that normally hung out there have started giving the park a wide berth. They both had a good laugh over it.

~ o x o ~

That summer Paulette spent almost as much time Below in the tunnels as she spent Above. A couple of times she brought sample editions of new books below to add to their library. She finally finished the O'Donnell book and over several conversations with Catherine and Vincent was able to fill in all the details that had been left out of the book.

All summer long she was romanced by both William and Joseph. Both were very attentive and when the three of them were together the two brothers would tease each other over who she might end up with. Paulette kept becoming closer to both of them but was unable to choose one above the other. Everyone below knew about the situation and soon nearly the entire tunnel community had fallen into two groups; those that were rooting for William and those that were rooting for Joseph. The immediate family remained scrupulously neutral on the matter. Occasionally one camp or the other would stage a prank to disrupt a date with the other brother but for the most part they were left alone when she was with one of them. Whenever the three of them were together there would usually be a little contest of one up-man-ship break out between the brothers.

By the middle of June William was completely healed. By the middle of July Paulette was off the crutches and back to normal. Paulette was over at the brownstone several times over the summer and became closer to Elizabeth. She had many conversations with Elizabeth about both William and Joseph and her relationship to them during this time.

Over the July 4th holiday Paulette was invited to go with the whole family to the waterfall lake. As she took in the massive cavern she thought that she had never seen anything so beautiful in her life. A lot of the tunnel dwellers were there and it soon turned into a massive beach party. Someone had even brought a portable stereo to supply the music.

This was the first time Paulette had ever seen any of the leonine males stripped down to just shorts and she was surprised at how thick the fir was over most of their bodies. As they sat around the campfire by the water's edge, Paulette thought there was something extremely romantic about the way William and Joseph both looked in their swimwear by firelight. She found the thought of running her fingers through that fur very intriguing. Then with a warm flush, she determinedly turned her thoughts to any other subject.

~ o x o ~

**August 2038**

By the end of July, after much nudging and hinting, Andy was finally introduced to both William and Joseph. By the end of August he had become another helper to the tunnels and he had become a good friend and confidant of Paulette's. Whenever she rode in his taxi they would exchange reports on each others relationships.

It was a very hot Sunday on the Labor Day weekend and William had invited Paulette to spend the day at the waterfall lake. There were several others there, including Elizabeth and several of William's family, when they arrived and they were all soon involved in very wet water games. Joseph and Charles were missing and she was told that they were dealing with an emergency repair on a broken water main. That evening they all sat around the campfire cooking wieners and swapping stories.

As the evening wore on people began to leave by ones and twos. William and Paulette had been stretched out on the blanket talking for quite a while when she realized that they were the only ones there. "William, there's nobody else here but us." She remarked, surprised.

"I noticed that." He replied with a grin. "We've been the only ones here for the last twenty minutes."

They gazed at each other in silence for several seconds then he leaned in and kissed her. She kissed back then their arms were around each other as he pulled her into his embrace. The feel of his fur against her skin was so sensual, like nothing she had ever experienced before. Both their hands had begun to wander and she felt herself drowning in the new sensations as well as her own conflicting emotions. She had a momentary image of Joseph, with a sad hurt look on his face, flash through her mind causing the _confusion_ and _conflict_ within her to increase.

William pulled back. He could feel the emotions racing through her. She _wanted_ him but she was _confused_, _conflicted_. She was also a tiny bit _afraid_.

Paulette pulled back at the same instant. Suddenly she was filled with _doubt_, and the strength of her own desires scared her. She wanted more but she was confused by her own _uncertainty_. She didn't know what to do.

They stared at each other, neither one sure how it had come this far or what to do now. After a while they quietly gathered their things together and headed back to the home tunnels. At her chamber door William kissed her. It was a friendly rather than a passionate kiss and he did not come in. "Goodnight." He said quietly then he headed up the tunnel. It was still early but she was feeling a bit depressed so she went straight to bed.

As she lay in her bed, she kept going over what had happened. She had almost crossed a line that she had promised herself she would not cross, unless she was certain that this was the one. She especially didn't want to make the situation with William and Joseph any more complicated than it had already become. It had been so totally unexpected and she still could hardly believe how strong her feelings were. None of the few times she had been with Frank had even come close to the intensity of her desires tonight. It seemed that whether she liked it or not she had fallen, hard, for both of them and she was unable to chose between them. On top of that she was feeling guilty over what had almost just happened with William. It would have been unfair to William considering how she felt about Joseph and it would have been a betrayal of her feelings for Joseph. She felt trapped in an impossible situation.

For a long time sleep eluded her as she lay there with her thoughts in chaos and her feelings still unresolved. Finally she dropped off around midnight out of sheer exhaustion.

_**Continued in Part 9**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Summer nights _**_is sung by _**_John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John_**  
**YouTube = **_www . youtube watch?v=FpJUrt0O7uY_


	9. Runaway

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 9 : Runaway**

Paulette awoke in the early morning hours from a disturbing dream about her and the two brothers that left her feeling even more _uncertain_, _worried_ and _very unhappy_. How was she going to face William or Joseph feeling the way she did? She had to get away from here before she hurt either one of them any more than she probably already had. She began getting dressed; her mind was in so much turmoil that she was barely aware of what she was doing until she was standing in the open drainage culvert doorway. She glanced back into the tunnel for a moment, and then, with a small whimper of despair, she closed the secret doorway behind her and headed for the road.

~ o x o ~

Joseph knew there was something wrong. Something had happened last night while he and Father had been working on that damn rusty water main. For a short time last night, he had caught faint hints of emotion from his brother that led him to believe that maybe Paulette had finally chosen William. That had changed to _surprise_ and _embarrassed disappointment_. Then had come the _disillusion_ and _worry_ from William that remained until sleep had finally overtaken him. By the time the repair crew had gotten back to the main tunnels, everyone was asleep and Joseph had simply collapsed into his bed in exhaustion. One thing he remembered was sensing Paulette's _unease_, even in her sleep, as he had trudged tiredly past her chamber on the way to Williams and his chamber.

When Joseph woke up the next morning, William had already left their chamber. He could feel the _unease, loss_ and _worry_ from his brother. He glanced into Paulette's chamber, already aware that it was empty. He could not sense her presence anywhere nearby. Though neither of them had formed a bond with her, both he and his brother had become extra sensitive to her presence and he could tell that she was not anywhere in the central chambers.

Turning away from the open doorway to Paulette's chamber, Joseph headed for the library where he knew he would find the one person who might know what was going on.

Joseph entered the library to find William sitting with the Brigit O'Donnell manuscript across his knees and looking as despondent as they both felt. "William, do you know what has happened to Paulette?"

"I blew it." William looked up. "I let things go a little too far, then when I felt her internal conflict, I pulled back too far. I'm afraid that when I distanced myself from her it really upset her a lot. Now she has retreated to the surface and I don't think she will be returning."

Joseph was distressed by this news. "But how could she stay away?" He shook his head in denial. "She loves us . . . and we love her." This was not good. They couldn't be loosing her now.

"**That** is the problem little brother." William glanced down at the manuscript, she had loved reading it, then looked back up at his brother. "She is in love with both of us. She can't bring herself to choose between us and she doesn't want to hurt either of us, so I'm afraid that she will most likely stay away."

"Maybe if one of us bows out. Then she can have the other with a free conscious." It was the only thing he could think of. If he stepped aside then she could come back and be with William. Most of their friends thought she would eventually choose him anyway. To be honest, sometimes Joseph even wondered if William wouldn't be the better match for her.

William shook his head. "It won't wash. We cannot make the decision for her. It would be wrong to take the choice away from her and it would be unfair to the one that dropped out." William was pretty sure that Joseph was thinking of being the one to drop out and he couldn't allow that. He meant what he had just said.

"So what do we do?" Joseph was at a loss as he plopped down into one of the chairs.

"I don't know." William shrugged his shoulders. "I've already rejected bumping you off as a solution and I've been unable to come up with anything else." There was just a hint of a smile on William's face, as he tried to lighten the mood.

Joseph sensed William's heart and knew that the half smile on his face was false. Joseph sat there thinking for a while in silence. Finally, he looked up at his brother. "Well since we have both thrown out the idea of bumping the other one off as a solution, maybe it's time to turn to the big guns."

William looked up at Joseph. "Go to Mom and Dad?" He remarked incredulously.

"Why not? If anyone can help us they can." Joseph shrugged

~ o ~

Joseph and William arrived in the brownstone to find Charles and Elizabeth at the dining room table waiting for them. Charles had sensed them coming. After describing their problem to their parents, they sat there waiting for guidance.

Elizabeth was the first to respond. "I thought this might happen." She glanced over at Charles then continued. "Paulette is in over her head and she doesn't know how to deal with it."

Charles jumped in. "Paulette is a very passionate girl who thinks with her heart." He shook his head. "Do you remember what I told you last spring when this contest first began? Her emotions are very strong and run very deep. She is being overwhelmed by conflicting desires and doesn't know how to handle her current dilemma so she has run away. The two of you are going to have to help her understand that she can choose one of you without devastating the other or we may loose her."

"How can we help?" Joseph asked.

Elizabeth responded. "One of you should talk to her, try to put her fears to rest. Tonight would be best before she decides on more drastic action." Elizabeth gazed at her two youngest sons a moment. "Since she was with William when she hit this impasse, he should be the one to talk to her." She took William's hand. "From what you told us, she probably thinks she has already lost you so it has to be you that talks to her."

Charles added. "Just keep in mind, when she finally does know what she really wants, it will be like the emotional equivalent of a shattered water main. The resulting emotional flood will probably be overwhelming and there will be no question in anybody's mind." He paused to be sure he had the full attention of both boys. "Whoever she chooses must be ready to accept her decision and her love without doubts and without hesitation. Any other response, after all she's been through, would be disastrous."

~ o ~

It was Monday afternoon and Paulette had just finished packing the new suitcase she had purchased. She had been unable to bring herself to return below to retrieve hers from the chamber she had been staying in. The earliest flight she had been able to book for Nebraska left in an hour and a half and it had cost half her savings to book such a last minute flight over a holiday.

She was reaching for her door when she thought she had heard something and paused. It must have been her imagination. She pulled her door open and stepped out into the hall. As she started to pull her door shut, she heard it again. It had sounded like tapping at a window. Dropping her suitcase, she raced through the apartment to the window and threw it open. It was still daylight and there was no one there but the bird she had startled. The fire escape was empty. With a deep sad sigh and a single tear, she closed the window and left the apartment.

~ o ~

Just minutes before dark the delivery truck, parked behind Paulette's building, finally pulled out of the alley and William practically exploded out of the manhole behind Paulette's apartment. He shot up the fire escape to her fifth floor window. He knew before he tapped on her window that he was too late. The apartment was empty and dark. William crouched in a dark corner of the landing, pulled his cloak around himself and settled down to wait.

Around one in the morning, he finally accepted that she was gone and might not be coming back anytime soon. He knew that she had not showed up Below because he would have felt his brother's emotional reaction if she had. Dispirited, he headed Below. Now what? How could he find out where she went? William entered their chamber to find Joseph still awake.

"No luck brother?" Joseph asked, though he already knew the answer.

"She's gone." William stated flatly. "And I have no way to find her."

Joseph gave a deep sigh and shook his head. "We've blown it, brother." He thought a minute then looked up at William. "If we catch mother before she goes to work in the morning, maybe she can find her."

William looked at him a moment. "You're probably right. If anyone could, she can."

~ o x o ~

Elizabeth hurried down the stairs on her way out when she was surprised to see William and Joseph waiting in the parlor for her. She didn't need to be an empath to tell that they were unhappy. "What's wrong?" She stopped before them.

"It's Paulette, she's gone." Joseph stated forlornly.

"Gone?" She had been half-afraid of this after yesterday's conversation with them.

"She didn't return to her apartment last night and she didn't go Below." William elaborated. "We don't know what has happened to her." He paused. "We were hoping maybe you could find out where she has gone." He finished hopefully.

Elizabeth thought for a moment then sighed and nodded her head. "OK, I'll see what I can find out." She gave each of her boys a kiss on the cheek. "I'll let you know what I find out when I get home tonight." She had a few good ideas where to start.

"Thanks Mom." They both responded.

Elizabeth headed out the door and the brothers headed Below. They had just reached the home tunnels when an emergency call went out on the pipes. The water main, which Charles and Joseph had been working on, had sprung several more leaks and all Chandler-Wells males were needed at the site to help in the repair effort before it got worse and flooded half of the home tunnels. The repair of the old city main took up the rest of the day. They finally returned to the community dining room just before the kitchen had closed for the day.

Elizabeth was in the dining chamber waiting for them. "I found Paulette." She announced as soon as they reached her.

"Where is she?" Asked William.

"Did she come home?" Asked Joseph.

Elizabeth shook her head. "She called her boss and took an indefinite leave of absence from her job then she took the 6:15 flight to Nebraska yesterday evening." Elizabeth gazed up at her two youngest sons sympathetically.

"Nebraska?" William asked stunned and dispirited.

"That's where her mother lives." Joseph commented then glanced at his brother. "How do we get her back from there?"

~ o ~

Maryanne gazed at her daughter, in sympathy, wondering how to respond. Paulette had flown in last night, a total wreck, and had been babbling nearly incoherently. She had finally gotten her daughter calmed down enough that she had finally fallen asleep. The only thing Maryanne had been able to get from her daughter's ramblings was something about two brothers and an impossible situation. Paulette had finally come trudging into the kitchen, ten minutes ago this morning, looking like she had lost her last friend.

Now Paulette sat across from her at the table silently nursing the cup of coffee and occasionally picking at her breakfast. Last night she had been babbling and this morning she refused to say anything. Maryanne had seen it before and recognized the signs. Another disastrous love affair.

Maryanne shook her head. Her daughter was a sweet, kind, good-hearted person but she could fall in love at the drop of a hat and she had the worst taste in men that Maryanne had ever seen. The last she had heard, her daughter had been with that Frank character. Maryanne had known the guy was trouble the first time she heard about him. She again thought back to last night and wondered; what did Frank have to do with two brothers? Frank didn't have any brothers, only an older sister. She remembered the names Joseph and William being mentioned but very little else of her daughter's ramblings last night had made much sense. If the pattern held true to form, she would not be able to get anymore out of her daughter for a while until she was ready to open up and talk. The best thing she could do now was try to get Paulette's mind off her troubles.

"Paulette, honey, I have to go into town to do some shopping." Paulette looked up at the sound of her mother's voice. "Would you like to come with me?"

Paulette gazed absentmindedly at her mother for a few moments then finally shrugged and answered. "Yea, sure. That will be fine." Then she resumed staring at her uneaten breakfast.

~ o ~

Maryanne and Paulette had ended up spending the whole day in town and Paulette's mood had lightened somewhat. Their late lunch at the seafood restaurant in the mall had been relatively up beat and for a moment Maryanne thought her daughter was about to talk to her. They were both looking out the window into the parking lot and a teenager in ragged patched clothes had passed by. Paulette's face fell and the moment had passed.

That evening they had dinner at Paulette's favorite Mexican restaurant. They then decided to take in a movie and Maryanne had even let Paulette pick the one to see. It had, of course, been one of those dreadful monster movies that Paulette was so fond of. Something about a mad scientist on an uncharted island experimenting on crossing the genes of humans and animals. Things seemed to be going well until the halfway point when a tiger-man came bounding, roaring, out of the jungle to attack the heroes. Paulette had broken down and run crying out of the theater. The trip home had been a somber silent affair.

As soon as they were in the door, Paulette turned to her mother. "I'm so tired Mom. I think I'll just go straight to bed."

"Alright, honey. Good night." Maryanne replied,

Maryanne watched her daughter trudge back to her room. She had seen her daughter through some bad breakups but this one seemed to have been particularly hard on her. Some of the things Paulette had said while in town today led her to believe that her daughter did not plan on returning to New York. She shook her head. Paulette had loved living in New York.

After a while, Maryanne finally went to bed. She thought about their day together and found herself wondering why that ridiculous movie had affected her daughter like that.

~ o x o ~

The next day Maryanne spent most of the morning puttering around the house doing random housework and worrying about her daughter. She was at a loss. Her daughter was in pain and she desperately wanted to help her, but there was not much she could do until Paulette was ready to tell her what had happened.

Maryanne paused at Paulette's door several times but there were no sounds from the other side. Finally, around eleven she heard Paulette stirring in her room and started making lunch for them both. She was just about to call her daughter into the kitchen for brunch when she heard a knock at her door. "One moment." She called out. She pulled off her kitchen apron and quickly brushed off the front of her clothes, and then she went to answer the door.

When Maryanne opened the door, she found herself face to face with an elegant well-dressed woman about her age. "I'm here to see Paulette Gibson. Is she in?" The woman asked politely.

"Um, yes she's here." Maryanne felt a little bit flustered by this obviously very sophisticated woman. "Won't you come in? Paulette should be out in just a few minutes." She led the woman into her, suddenly rather inadequate, little living room. The woman smiled politely at her as she followed her in. "Please have a seat." She noticed the woman glancing around at her small place, but there was none of the distain she had expected to see in this, well dressed, woman's face, only mild curiosity. "Is there anything I can get you?" She asked a bit nervously.

The woman turned her attention back to Maryanne and smiled warmly at her. "No thank you. I'm just here to see Paulette." The woman replied. "I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Elizabeth."

As Paulette came into the living room, she looked up in surprise to see Elizabeth sitting on the sofa and sat down stunned in the chair next to her. They sat there gazing at each other for a few moments. Paulette could see intense scrutiny in Elizabeth's eyes but there was no condemnation there. Finally, Elizabeth tilted her head and there was just a hint of a smile on her face. "So, I understand you and William had an interesting time the other night." Elizabeth remarked casually.

_**Continued in Part 10**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Runaway _**_is sung by _**_Del Shannon _**  
**YouTube = **_www . youtube watch?v__=tSuztm8G9TY (or) __www . youtube __ watch?v=5OwkQPSsIxc&feature=related_


	10. Take My Breath Away

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 10 : Take My Breath Away**

Paulette gazed at Elizabeth in surprise for a moment then felt the heat rise in her cheeks as she looked down. "What happened was . . . unexpected." She paused for a moment then looked up at Elizabeth. "What am I going to do? I'm afraid I've ruined everything." She looked back down.

Elizabeth reached out and touched her forearm. "Nothing bad happened and it's way too soon to start beating yourself up about it." She gave her forearm a little squeeze. "William and Joseph both miss you terribly, and I have come on their behalf to ask you to come back." She glanced over at Maryanne who was trying to understand what was going on here.

"But how can I face them feeling the way I do?" Paulette responded ending in a half sob.

"Both boys know exactly how you feel and they both understand your dilemma. They both care a great deal about you and they want you back. No matter how you finally choose between them they will both understand and accept it."

"But I can't choose. I don't know what to do." Paulette nearly wailed as Maryanne finally got a glimmer of what was going on.

Elizabeth glanced at Maryanne then continued. "Paulette, you are a very caring passionate person and you have found yourself in a situation that you have never faced before. As Vincent used to always tell me, 'keep your mind clear, follow your heart and everything will work itself out in the end.' I've always tried to follow that advice and it has never steered me wrong."

Paulette gazed at Elizabeth for a moment then spoke. "I'll try to remember that." She responded quietly. "Thank you."

Elizabeth looked into her eyes for a few moments then with a sigh asked her, "Will you come back with me to New York?" She glanced again at Maryanne and continued. "I've booked two seats on tonight's flight just incase I could get you to come back with me." Paulette looked up at Elizabeth and found only understanding and sympathy in her eyes.

~ o ~

Paulette was sitting at her little table deep in thought. She had only been back in her apartment about an hour, when there was a tapping on her fire escape window. It was William. He asked her to meet him on the roof and headed up the fire escape. A few minutes later, she met him there. They sat on the edge of the roof side by side for several minutes just staring quietly out at the city lights. Finally he spoke. "Do you regret what almost happened at the lake?"

She looked up at him, startled. "No! . . . Well, not completely . . ." She glanced down. "I just . . . I 'm just not sure it was the right . . . timing." She was unsure how to explain how she felt.

After a minute, William looked at her. "You're still feeling conflicted, unable to choose between Joseph and me."

She looked down at her hands clasped in her lap. "I love you both and I don't know what to do about it or how to face either of you with my thoughts and feelings in such a total mess."

After another pause, William reached out and grabbed her hand causing her to look up at him again. "Some of this is my fault. I overreacted at the lake when I felt your confusion. I was trying to give you some distance and I think you misunderstood my feelings and intentions." He raised his head and looked her straight in the eye. "When you finally know what you really want, there will no longer be any doubt in your mind. You should know by now that I would love to be the one and, I must admit, Joseph feels the same way about you, but in the end it must be your choice, not ours. Just follow your heart wherever it leads you, and remember that your happiness is paramount for both Joseph and me." He gave her hand a squeeze. "I have to get Below." He shook his head. "That old water main we keep fixing has sprung another leak further up the line and it's going to take all of us, again, to get this newest leak fixed before it turns into a flood." He stood up then paused looking down at her. "Just follow your heart, Paulette."

William quickly disappeared over the side of the building and was gone. Paulette sat there for several minutes thinking about what he had said. Finally, she got up hand headed back down to her apartment.

~ o x o ~

It was Friday afternoon and Paulette had gotten off work early. She had been piddling about her apartment for the last two hours, debating with herself whether to go Below for the weekend. As much as she wanted to, she had only been back a couple of days and still didn't know what she should say to the boys. All week long, she had wrestled with her feelings and she was still as confused, conflicted and undecided as ever. William had told her that he understood and accepted the situation but what about Joseph? What could she say to him and how would he feel about it. What had begun as infatuation and flirtation, had quickly become as serious as a heartbeat and she was trapped in the middle. She was in over her head and she had no idea what to do about it. For that matter, how was she to know which one she should choose, even if she could?

Her reverie was interrupted by the sound of tapping on her fire escape window. She looked up in surprise to see Joseph at the window, **and it was still daylight**. She ran over, her only thought now was about the danger to Joseph, threw up the window and practically dragged him into the room. "What do you think your doing?" She chastised. "Someone might have seen you." Her heart was pounding with fear as she peered out the window looking for any observers. Then she drew the curtains, her fear turning to anger. "Are you crazy?" She continued to scold. "Don't you know how dangerous it is for you to be out Above in broad daylight?" She was beginning to get her emotions under control. "What are you doing here anyway?"

Joseph cocked his head to the side and smiled at her. "Don't you remember? We have a date tonight. I'm supposed to take you to see the premier of the Fall season of Shakespeare in The Park. We planned this over three weeks ago." He took a step towards her. "When you didn't show up Below I thought you might have forgotten so I came up to get you."

Paulette stared at him for several seconds before she found her voice. "I, ah, I wasn't sure it would be a good idea after . . . after what has happened." She looked down at the floor trying to get her rapidly fluctuating emotions under control.

After a few seconds of silence she was startled to hear Joseph chuckle and looked up in surprise. He was smiling wide enough to show his fangs. "The contest isn't over yet and I don't give up that easily." There was actually a twinkle of mischief in his eyes. "Besides I can tell that, despite your fears, you are happy to see me and you still want to go."

"But . . . but . . ." She wound down unable to think of any kind of reasonable response.

"Good, no more stalling. Get yourself ready and I will pick you up at your chamber in an hour and a half."

He turned toward the window. "Wait!" She called out in fear for his safety. "It's still light out. What if you're seen?"

"So you **do** care." He responded with a mischievous grin. "Don't worry, I'll be perfectly safe. There's nobody in the alley and there's a storm drain manhole just thirty feet from your fire escape." Before she could respond, he had raised the window and was gone.

After a moment of stunned immobility, she ran to the window and looked out just in time to see the manhole cover in question settling into place. She marveled anew at this example of how fast and strong the leonine males were.

Paulette went about in a daze getting ready for their date. Joseph still wanted to see her! She knew that Joseph **had** to know what had happened and how she was feeling. Maybe their friendships were salvageable after all. She would just have to be extra careful not to let things spin out of control like with William. But that still didn't solve the underlying dilemma haunting her.

Paulette reached the street to find Andy waiting for her next to his taxicab and sporting a big grin that immediately lightened her mood. "I got a message from Joseph that you would be needing me." He remarked, explaining his presence as he opened the cab door for her. He went around, hoped into the driver's seat and glanced over his shoulder. "I assume you want to be dropped off at the usual place." Paulette nodded in answer as he pulled out from the curb. Over the summer he had become a close friend and confidant. Andy again glanced over his shoulder. "You're looking particularly nice. Any special plans for tonight?" He inquired.

She nodded. "He's taking me to see Shakespeare in the park tonight."

She saw his look of surprise reflected in the rear view mirror. "How in the world is he going to pull that off?" Andy asked.

Paulette shrugged. "I have no idea how he plans to accomplish it."

He glanced back at her through the mirror. "You will have to let me know how it goes, and I expect details." He laughed. "I'm going to be there tonight too. I'm taking Maria. As soon as I drop you off I'm going to head over to pick her up."

"Oh? How are things going between you two?" She asked. Andy and Maria had been going together since last June. Paulette had only met her once but she liked Maria a lot. She thought Maria and Andy made a good couple. Sometimes she envied their simple uncomplicated relationship.

"I think I may ask her to marry me tonight." He replied and she could see the red rise in his cheeks as he smiled at her in the mirror. "I'm so nervous; I hope I can keep my courage up long enough to ask."

"That sounds wonderful and good luck." She replied with a grin. Talking to Andy was already lightening her mood.

After Andy dropped her off in the park she again wished him good luck as he sped off to his own rendezvous. She turned and made her way down to the north tunnel entrance. Soon she was back in her own little chamber making some last minute adjustments in her mirror. The worry and uncertainty were welling up again when she glanced over to see William standing at the doorway. He smiled. "Just dropped by to say hi and I hope you enjoy the play." He gave her a wink and was gone.

A few minutes later Joseph showed up. "Are you ready to go?" He asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be." She replied as she approached him. "I am dying to know how you are going to pull this off."

"You'll see." He replied as he took her arm and led her through the tunnels, all the while talking about Shakespeare. After several turns, they were soon in an area of the tunnels that she was unfamiliar with. She found herself thinking about the play they were going to see. She was reasonably familiar with the story of Romeo and Juliet; everyone knew the basic plot. She had always been more or less indifferent about Shakespeare, her only exposure being in high school literature. Joseph had assured her, when he had invited her, that seeing Shakespeare performed by good actors that really understood the material would be a revelation. She was still a little dubious but willing to give it a try.

Joseph opened a concealed doorway and, just beyond it, they came to a narrow stairway with walls that were lined in great stone blocks. He grabbed a candle from a small tray mounted to the wall, lit it and closed the hidden door behind them. As they climbed the stairs, she couldn't help thinking there was something strangely familiar about these stone walls. At the top of the stairs was a door that opened into a small chamber just about a quarter the size of Paulette's chamber Below. There were a dozen unlit candles arrayed along a low stone ledge opposite the entrance. Along that same wall was a pile of mismatched pillows, folded quilts and a couple of coverlets. The walls, floor and ceiling were all made of the same large blocks of stone. It was then that it hit her that this was the same type of stone construction as Belvedere's Castle. With that realization, came a muted wave of _sorrow_. Joseph looked over at her. "What is it that makes you sad?" He asked.

She gazed up at him for a second. "It's just that these stone walls remind me of where I met Frank." She glanced down.

Joseph placed a comforting hand on her arm. "You met at Belvedere Castle?" He asked giving her a gentle squeeze.

She nodded and squared her shoulders. She was not about to let that lousy excuse for a boyfriend ruin her evening and she certainly didn't want to spoil it for Joseph. He gave her arm a squeeze then let go and crossed the chamber to light a few of the candles on the opposite shelf. He pulled out a couple of quilts and spread them next to one wall then he placed a few pillows against that wall. While he was doing this, she glanced around the chamber in confusion. The only opening in the chamber was the door they had just come through. She was consumed with curiosity, what exactly was he planning.

Paulette noticed that Joseph appeared to be trying to get a grip on one of the blocks that made up the wall. He pulled and the large stone came away. It turned out to be only about an inch thick. This exposed a steel bar embedded in the depression left by the slab he had removed. Joseph blew out all the candles and the only light left was the very faint illumination from a small LED light in the depression next to the metal bar. He grabbed the bar and gave it a yank. A slightly irregular section of the wall, about three feet wide, two feet high, one foot thick and two feet above the floor, swung inward towards the far wall where the candles were mounted.

Her curiosity overwhelming her, she knelt down and peered out. In front and to the right, the opening overlooked the Turtle Pond. To the left was the Delacorte Amphitheater. The sound of the crowd settling in carried clearly over the open ground and water between them and the stage. She realized that they would easily be able to see and hear the play from here. Noticing the soft silver light, she leaned forward and saw halfway up from the horizon the crescent of the quarter moon shining down upon the park. She pulled back and shifted over slightly leaving room for Joseph as he settled onto the pillows next to her. He placed his arm around her shoulder as the crowd became quiet and the play began.

The actors were very good and she was soon engrossed in the story of the two young star-crossed lovers. As the play progressed, she could feel her emotions stirring to the plight of the young lovers. She felt a need to be close to Joseph and he responded to that need by tightening his arm around her and drawing her in. The play reached its conclusion and for a long time after it had ended, she sat there, her head resting against his chest, tears trickling down her cheeks. She had never realized how moving the bittersweet beauty of that play could be in the right hands.

She looked up and found herself gazing into Joseph's impossibly brilliant blue eyes. The love and compassion she saw reflected there was undeniable and irresistible. For a moment, bright blue eyes and dark brown eyes gazed deeply into each other. Then slowly he leaned in and kissed her. The kiss deepened as the passions released by the play rose up within them both. Her pulse quickened and she was left feeling breathless. She felt a moment of _uncertainty_ flair up within her. Then their arms surrounded each other in a lovers embrace as the uncertainty, fear, and guilt, that had plagued her for the last week, melted away and the dam finally burst. They moved together and soon there was only Paulette and Joseph in their own private world. They had wandered far beyond familiar territory.

The passions within them both were quickly spiraling out of control. Paulette also become aware that she was feeling sensations that were not her own. It hit her, then, that she was actually feeling Joseph's emotions and sensations. Without even realizing it had happened, they were out of their clothes and their bodies pressed close together illuminated by the soft light of the quarter moon streaming through the open window. The feel of his fur against her skin pushed her further over the edge. Then she was feeling everything that he was, even to both of their heartbeats. As they came together, their hearts were soon beating in unison and all of their emotions and sensations were endlessly reflecting between them like a hall of mirrors as they both surrendered to the inevitable.

Some indefinable time later, they lay gazing into each other's eyes. As they lay together basking in the afterglow, Paulette felt the empathic link they had just shared, fade away and she was soon left with her own thoughts and feelings. Their lovemaking had been so intimate and all consuming that it had left them both totally stunned and breathless. Paulette snuggled in close against Joseph as she realized that there was no doubt, no confusion. She had finally made her choice. Though she still loved William, Joseph was the one she wanted. She gazed up into his eyes and saw that he already knew her decision as he drew her in tighter and kissed her.

After a while, Joseph got up, closed the secret window and lit the candles against the wall. He turned around and they both stared, drinking in the sight of the other's body, illuminated now by the golden flickering candlelight. Eventually they helped each other into their cloths then they blew out all the candles but the one he carried and left the amazing secret chamber.

When they reached the main tunnels, Joseph led her off in a different direction away from her chamber. They came to a doorway at the end of a long tunnel. The tapestry was pulled back and hooked. "Good, no one is using it tonight." Joseph commented as they entered. The chamber was slightly larger than most of the little apartment chambers and was dominated by a large beautiful four-poster bed. He dropped the tapestry then led her through a second doorway to the right and they were in a large private bath. The basin was a little bigger than the typical outdoor hot tub and the water that was constantly flowing through it was comfortably warm.

Paulette realized that she had heard about this chamber. It was a sort of special chamber often referred to as the honeymoon suite or the resort. There were actually four special chambers like this located at the outer edges of the home tunnels. She turned towards Joseph and he gently began removing her clothes. She started removing his clothes in response. Then they both slipped into the pool and snuggled in the warm water. A lot of touching and giggling and kissing took place in that tub in between sporadic efforts to help wash each other off. Eventually he led her out of the bath and into a small chamber that seemed to contain a tame tornado. It was like standing in a giant industrial strength blow dryer. She gazed at his body as his golden blond fur ruffled in the wind and his mane flew wildly about.

Clean, dry and still unclothed they climbed into the great bed, she noticed the sheets were a very soft white satin. Then her mind was on other things as they were soon making love again. Like before, as they moved together, the two-way link again came into being and their passion quickly spiraled out of control. She lost count of how many times they made love that night. All she knew for sure was that each time the link would again spring into existence for a short while during climax, and that at some point during their lovemaking, he had asked her to marry him and she had accepted.

"You seem very happy." He commented, as they lay there cuddled in each other's arms. "What are you thinking about?"

"You, my love. You take my breath away, every time we touch." She replied happily, as she drowsily snuggled in closer. With the feel of his warm breath on the back of her neck, she drifted off to sleep.

_**Continued in Part 11**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Take My Breath Away _**_is sung by_**_ Berlin_**

**YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?__v__DARX9nzNE3E&feature=related_


	11. Nights In White Satin

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 11 : Nights In White Satin  
**

William stood in the north tunnel access staring up at the silvery quarter moon. A slightly sad smile played across his face. Though he and Joseph had agreed to block their mutual link whenever one of them was with Paulette, there was always an infinitesimal, and usually easy to ignore, amount of leakage, especially between two brothers as close as he and Joseph were. However, when emotions were running as strongly as they were right now, the leakage was no longer so easy to ignore. It was like a radio turned down so low that you could not make out the tune but you could tell there was music playing. Down in the tunnels the static of all the emotions from nearby chambers would have drowned it out, but up here, in the solitude of his current location, that wasn't so. He had a fair idea what was happening with Paulette and Joseph.

He and Joseph had both liked her, a lot, right from the start and when they had first started competing for Paulette's affections, it had been a simple brotherly competition over a very, **very**, pretty girl. But soon they had both fallen in love with her and she had quickly reciprocated their feelings. By the time they had realized what it was doing to her, it was too late for either of them to back out without hurting her worse than her indecisiveness already had. They had decided to keep it as light as possible while she figured out which one of them she would choose. Even that had nearly led to disaster.

Now the logjam had broken and she had finally chosen. He was feeling a bit sorry for himself, it was inevitable that one of them would have eventually, but more importantly he was happy for Joseph and he was glad that she had finally found what she really wanted. After all that she had been through, he thought she deserved to, finally, find her happiness. Deep inside, he suspected that she would have been just as happy if she had chosen him. It merely depended on which one she was with when the logjam finally did break. But that didn't matter anymore. What mattered was that it had broken and he was sure that Joseph and Paulette would both be very happy together. He just hoped that some day he could find someone of his own that would love as unreservedly and whole-heartedly as Paulette did. Knowing her had caused William to set the bar fairly high.

He gazed up at the quarter moon and spoke softly to himself. "Now I think I know why wolves howl at the moon."

After a few minutes, William turned and headed Below seeking solace in the familiar emotional noise of the home tunnels.

~ o x o ~

Paulette awoke to the feeling of soft satin sheets and the weight of a furry arm across her middle. She stretched luxuriously as a wonderful sated languor engulfed her and glanced over to her side into the sleeping face of her beautiful golden blond leonine lover. She smiled to herself as she wondered what her mother, who had never thought much of her choice in men, would think if she could see her now. She snuggled in close and he opened his eyes and gazed into hers as his face lit up with a very toothy sunny smile.

"Good morning, my love." She said softly.

"Good morning to you, beloved." He responded.

After a bit of mutual cuddling they got out of bed. They went into the bath and helped each other clean up with a bit of playful touching and laughter. Then they put on large soft robes, gathered up their clothes, and headed out of the chamber. At the doorway she stopped, glancing back at the very rumpled bed, and asked. "Don't we need to clean up after ourselves?"

"No. This is one of the only places down here where you are not expected to clean up after yourself." He smiled and shook his head. "One of the chores we share down here is checking these rooms and cleaning them up if necessary. By tonight this chamber will be cleaned and ready for the next pair of lovers to use."

They stopped off at her chamber where he helped her get dressed in fresh clothes. Afterward they went to the chamber that he shared with William. The tapestry was drawn back and the chamber was empty. Paulette felt a twinge of _guilt_ as they entered the chamber. Joseph quickly got dressed then they left. They entered the dining chamber and found it half-full. The exertions of the previous night had left them both ravenous and they loaded up their plates to capacity, settled in a convenient location and, with an occasional nudge and giggle, dug in.

Halfway through the meal they both looked up to see William standing across from them holding a plate of food and gazing intently at them. Again, Paulette felt that twinge of _guilt_ flair up in her as she looked up at him. After a second, he sat down across from her. With a soft, very slightly sad, sigh and a smile he spoke. "I would have liked it, if it had been me, but I am very happy for you both and wish you the best." Paulette felt an odd mixture of _joy_, _sadness_ and a hint of _guilt_ as she looked at him. After a short pause, William spoke up again. "Please don't feel sad for me, Paulette. I don't." He placed his hand over hers and the old mischievous sparkle reappeared in his golden eyes. "I won't say you picked the best man, but I will admit that you made a very good choice. I really am happy for you both." He tilted his head. "To tell the truth, I was half expecting it might go this way since last week." She felt an easing of the guilt and sadness at his words. Joseph could tell that what William was telling her were half-truths and he silently acknowledged his thanks over his link with his brother.

After a few more minutes, Charles and Elizabeth approached them. Charles looked back and forth between them for a moment then cocked his head. "So, I see the great contest has ended." Elizabeth looked up at Charles in surprise then looked back at Joseph and Paulette. Her eyes widened as she took in the choice and the results. Not what she had expected.

They both blushed as Joseph spoke up. "I asked her to marry me and she accepted." He reached over and took her hand.

William, Charles and Elizabeth all looked at them in surprise as eyebrows shot up at the announcement. Elizabeth recovered first. "I thought things might develop quickly once a choice was made. Any plans as to when it will take place?"

Paulette responded with a shrug. "We haven't got that far yet." She paused. "I don't think it has really sunk in completely." She glanced over at Joseph then back at Elizabeth. "I'm still trying to convince myself that it really happened."

Joseph glanced over at Paulette. "Maybe this spring?"

Paulette felt a shiver of _joy_ run up her spine as she again looked back at Joseph. "It sounds wonderful to me if you think we can wait that long." She glanced down shyly.

"It appears that waiting does not factor into the equation." Charles remarked knowingly causing a sound halfway between a cough and a laugh to come from Elizabeth.

~ o x o ~

Monday morning Paulette approached the park road to find Andy and his taxi waiting for her. "Good morning, Andy. Did you have a good weekend?" She asked as she stepped into the car.

"I had a great weekend." He told her as he settled into the driver's seat.

"And how did things go with Maria?" She asked as he started to pull away.

After a moment, he responded. "I finally got up the nerve to ask her to marry me."

"And?" Paulette pushed.

"She said yes." He replied with a huge grin.

"So did I." She remarked with a grin of her own.

Andy's head snapped around so fast she wondered that he didn't give himself whiplash. "Who?"

"Joseph." She responded.

After a moment to absorb the news, he replied. "Congratulations."

"Right back at you." She responded.

~ o x o ~

That evening after work, Paulette went out and blew a large chunk of her household budget on two sets of top of the line white satin sheets like the ones that had been on the bed in the honeymoon suite Below. She also stopped to stare wistfully into the window of a bridal shop. Everything was so beautiful and so expensive.

The next evening Joseph came above right after dark and tapped at her window. They spent the remainder of the evening talking and making plans. When they retired to the bedroom, Joseph noticed the new satin sheets and grinned. The night was heavenly but she discovered that she definitely needed a much longer bed if he was going to be spending many nights there.

~ o x o ~

Over the last month, Paulette had begun to spend more of her nights Below. Sometimes just because it was more convenient than going all the way back to her apartment in the Bronx, but mostly to be able to spend more time with Joseph.

Paulette was at work gazing at her desk calendar, thinking of Halloween coming up in three weeks, and the possibilities that presented, when she got a summons to her boss's office. With a groan, she dragged her mind back to the present and headed to the other side of the hall where she paused at her supervisor's office door. "What do you need, Zack?" She asked.

Zack looked up from his desk. "Ah, Paulette, come in. I just got approval to add two more editors and a new lead editor to my department. You are now my newest lead editor, congratulations." He held out his hand to a stunned Paulette.

Belatedly she reached out and took his outstretched hand. "Uh, thank you, sir." This was a major promotion for her.

"You deserve it, Paulette. The promotion also includes a fifty percent increase in salary, as well as the increase in responsibility." He grinned at her as she continued to gaze at him in surprise.

~ o x o ~

That weekend Paulette was talking to Elizabeth about her promotion. She mentioned that with the new pay increase she had been thinking of looking for a place closer to Central Park. Maybe even something with tunnel access. Elizabeth informed her that there was a reasonably priced apartment available on the 18th floor of Catherine Chandler's old building and best of all it had direct access to the tunnels.

Paulette looked at her a bit sadly. "As much as I like the place, I don't think that will work out. That's where Frank lives." She looked down. "Thank-you anyway." She sighed.

Elizabeth grinned as she shook her head. "He doesn't live there anymore." Her smile took on the same mischievous look that Paulette often saw on Joseph and William. "Shortly after your wreck, there was a dust up between him and his secretary's husband. He ended up losing his job just as the rent went up on his apartment. Last I heard, he was living in Pennsylvania."

~ o ~

The next day Elizabeth took Paulette over to see the place. The apartment was almost a mirror image of Frank's old apartment but with the addition of a kitchenette and a larger balcony that was accessible from both the bedroom and the parlor. The apartment came fully furnished and the bedroom had a giant California king bed. It was a beautiful little apartment. The rent was twice that of her old apartment but it still seemed awfully low for this location. It was a lot less than Frank had been paying for his tenth floor apartment. "I love it, but why is the rent on this place so reasonable?" She finally asked.

Elizabeth smiled back at her. "The family owns the building and we can set the rent at whatever we want." She swept the apartment with her hand. "This is a very special apartment and we only rent it to very special people." She took Paulette's hand. "This used to be Catherine's apartment and I can't think of anyone I would rather have staying here than you."

After a little convincing, Paulette accepted. It took her only a day to move her things into the new apartment. The very next day, after she moved in, she went out and splurged on a set of white satin sheets for the new bed.

~ o ~

Paulette was standing in the middle of her parlor breathing in the ambiance of her new apartment and thinking of all the stories from when Catherine had lived here. She was interrupted by a tapping on the French doors. She sprinted over and pulled the door open to find Joseph standing there on the balcony. She entered his embrace and they kissed.

After they broke she smiled up at him. "Have any trouble getting up here?" She asked.

"No, I just asked Vincent the best way up." He grinned. "He used to meet Catherine on this very balcony all the time."

"That's what Elizabeth told me." She grinned back. Then she grabbed his hand. "Come on inside." She drew him into the parlor. After a quick tour of the apartment, they ended up in the bedroom. Joseph was amused to notice that she had already gotten new white satin sheets for the bed. Ever since that first night they made love in the honeymoon chamber, she had developed a definite preference for them. Before long, they were christening the large bed and its new white satin sheets.

~ o x o ~

**December 2038**

When Joseph met her on her snow-covered balcony, Paulette noticed that he was carrying a very colorful candle in his hand. "Is that a Winterfest candle?" She asked. Winterfest had been a major topic of conversation for the last few weeks below and she was really looking forward to her first one.

"Yes it is." He grinned. "I assume you are going."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." She grinned back. "I was hoping we could announce our wedding date at Winterfest."

Joseph nodded. "That is a great idea." He chuckled. "Now all we need to do is pick the date."

She looked down at the snow-covered chair behind him a moment then looked up into his eyes. "I was kinda thinking about the day we met."

His grin widened. "Sounds like a winner to me. Vincent and Catherine got married on the anniversary of the day they met. I like it."

"I know." She responded with a shy smile. They moved into the warmer parlor and as they lay on the floor cuddling before the flickering fireplace, they made plans for their coming wedding.

After a while, Joseph noticed a hint of _worry_ from her. "What's wrong Paulette?" He asked her.

She looked into his eyes for a few seconds. "Does it ever bother you that we have never formed a connection like Peter and Cherry have or like what your parents and the others like you have with their mates?"

He gazed back into her eyes for a moment, and then responded with a shake of his head. "No." He said simply.

"Sometimes I worry about it." She continued. "Sometimes I wonder if it means that I'm not really the right one for you." She looked down. "Or maybe it's because of the feelings I still have for William." She finished softly.

Joseph placed one clawed finger beneath her chin and gently lifted her head until she looked into his eyes. "You are exactly what I want. I love you with all my heart, with or without the bond. You are mine and I am yours." He paused a moment. "I am still an empath and I know how you feel about me and about him. You will always care about William. That will never change; it's who and what you are. But you are very much in love with me, just as I am very much in love with you." He gave her that crooked half smile that she found so irresistible. "We may not have the bond joining us together, but the love we share joins our hearts just as strongly as any bond ever could." He touched her heart. "Our hearts are linked through our love." He leaned in and kissed her, making her whole body tingle then he smiled at her. "We may not have formed a permanent bond like the others but we do get a taste of it every time we make love."

~ o x o ~

**Spring 2039**

Paulette paced her parlor in frustration. She had wanted a white satin wedding gown, but she was unable to find one that was even remotely affordable. She turned to Clarissa who had been helping her plan her wedding. "Maybe it's foolish to make so much of this, but it means something special to me." She plopped herself into the sofa dispirited. "I just can't stretch my budget far enough and there is no way my mother could afford to help me." She shook her head regretfully.

Clarissa gazed at her and rested her hand on Paulette's forearm sympathetically. She knew that Paulette was determined to cover the costs herself to avoid burdening her mother. She had no other living relatives that she could turn to for help. "I understand, and it's not a minor detail." She gave her arm a gentle squeeze. "I know why white satin means so much to you and if that's what you want, that's what you should get." Clarissa wanted to help but was unsure how.

Paulette held up her hand with her fingers about an inch apart. "I'm about this close to just buying another set of satin sheets and seeing if they can make something from them down in the tunnels."

Clarissa thought a moment and her eyes lit up. "You know, that might not be such a bad idea." She mumbled quietly to herself under her breath. She dug through the magazines they had been looking at until she found the one she wanted. She then quickly flipped through it until she found the picture she wanted and showed it to Paulette. "You really liked this one, didn't you?" It was white satin with a red satin trim from a very famous designer. The model shown wearing it in the picture was Emily Hansen.

Paulette glanced down at the picture. She had loved that one but the price was as much as three years worth of rent on this apartment. "As if." She remarked with a quick snort of a laugh. "My company's CEO couldn't afford that one." She gazed longingly at the picture. It was such a beautiful dress.

Clarissa ripped the page from the magazine and stood up. "I have an idea." She gave Paulette a sunny smile. "Don't give up hope." She folded the picture, put it in her pocket and left.

For several seconds Paulette gazed at her front door, wondering what Clarissa had in mind. Paulette shook her head and glanced over at her clock. It was late enough for her mother to be home from work. She picked up her phone and called. As she listened to the line ring tone, she looked down at the round trip airline tickets Elizabeth had given her this morning. She quietly prayed that her mother could get the time off, and that she would come to New York, and that she would be able to handle meeting Joseph, and that she would accept the idea of her marriage to Joseph, and that she would be there for the wedding. She sighed gustily. That was a lot to ask of one God to handle, much less her mother.

Then she heard her mother's voice on the other end of the line. Paulette took a deep breath and plunged in.

_**Continued in Part 12**_

* * *

'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_Nights in White Satin _**_is sung by_**_ The Moody Blues_**

**YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?__v__=9muzyOd4Lh8&feature=fvw  
_**YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?__v__DARX9nzNE3E&feature=related_


	12. I Do

**Destinies In Collision  
**_By Thomas Mc_

* * *

**Chapter 12 : I Do**

After three intense weeks of searching, Paulette had been unable to find a suitable wedding dress that she could afford. The wedding was in two weeks and she had decided that tomorrow she would hit the discount section of the bridal store chain that was located six blocks away, and take the first dress that she could fit into and afford. Clarissa burst into her chamber with a huge grin and a large package announcing, "I've got the solution to your problem right here." She plopped the package down on Paulette's bed with a triumphant flourish.

Paulette anxiously opened the package Clarissa had brought her. Inside was a beautiful white satin wedding gown with red satin trim that had been embroidered in red and gold thread. With the exception of the embroidery, it looked very much like the one in the magazine that she had liked so much. The material in the bodice was slightly less shiny than the rest of the dress and was covered in beautiful white scrollwork embroidery. She pulled it out of the carton and held it up. Her eyes caught the blue sparkle of sapphire earrings, which matched the color of Joseph's eyes, in the bottom of the box. Clarissa helped her try it all on and she looked at herself in the mirror. The red trim on the dress actually seemed to bring out the red in her hair and the sapphire earrings were just the right touch to finish it off.

She looked tearfully over at Clarissa. "It's so beautiful, but where, how?"

Clarissa grinned. "It was your suggestion. Satin sheets and tunnel ingenuity. The bodice is from an old sheet from the honeymoon suite." She finished with a wink. "I knew that would have a special meaning for you." Then she grinned. "The earrings are on loan from mother. So all together, you've got it covered." She touched the dress. "Something old, something new." She touched one of the earrings. "Something borrowed, something blue."

~ o x o ~

Maryanne gazed at her daughter, in disbelief, wondering how to respond. She had flown in last night, a week before Paulette's wedding, all the way from Nebraska to meet her daughter's fiancé. She knew that Joseph was supposed to be a bit unusual looking, Paulette had emphasized that fact, without elaborating on it, often enough in her many letters and phone calls, but this latest revelation of hers seemed to be stretching things to the point of absurdity. Even her daughter's insistence that Joseph was an empath seemed almost unremarkable when compared to this. The picture Maryanne had in her head was totally ridiculous, like something out of one of those bad monster movies her daughter loved.

Maryanne was startled by the sound of tapping on the French doors. She looked over surprised. That balcony had been empty just twenty minutes ago and they were eighteen floors up. "He's here." Paulette exclaimed as she jump up from the sofa. Running over she threw open the doors and pulled a huge hooded figure inside from the darkened balcony as Maryanne stood up. "Joseph, this is my mother Maryanne Gibson."

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you Mrs. Gibson." The voice that wafted from under that deep hood sent shivers up Maryanne's spine. That voice alone was more than enough to explain her daughter's attraction to him.

As her daughter and the huge figure placed their arms around each other's waist Maryanne finally noticed his hands, with their thick fur covering and long sharp claws. Her eyes went wide with surprise. Then the figure reached up with his free hand and pulled back the hood. She sat back down in stunned silence. Paulette had **not** been exaggerating. In fact, her daughter's description and Maryanne's mental image had both fallen far short of the reality that now stood before her. His appearance was so very frightening, yet at the same time, she thought there was something rather magnificently regal about him. The words '**_King of the Beasts_**' popped into her mind.

After getting her initial rush of _fear_ and _awe_ under control, Maryanne slowly stood back up. She kept thinking about all those creepy horror movies that her daughter was so fond of. Now Paulette was apparently engaged to something . . . someone that looked like he could have stepped right off the screen from one of those films. Maryanne shook herself and took a single hesitant step forward. She was stunned again when the pictures in her magazines from the Beauty and the Beast fashion show in Central Park a year and a half ago flashed through her mind. Those lion-men had been real?

Reacting to her mother's expressions Paulette hastened to explain. "I know how he looks, mother, believe me." Paulette glanced up at him then looked back at her mother. "The first time I saw him, I was so frightened, I passed out." She leaned her head against his chest as she continued. "But then I got to know him." She grinned. "The more I got to know him, the more I liked the way he looks."

Joseph glanced down at Paulette. "I'm glad you finally decided that you like my appearance after all." He responded with a chuckle. Then he kissed the top of her head. "I like the way you look too. Particularly the first time I saw you."

His smile widened and Maryanne spotted actual fangs peeking out. Then she noticed that her daughter had turned bright red and wondered just what their first meeting had been like to cause that reaction.

Maryanne had to admit that there was something appealing to Joseph's strong self-confident demeanor, combined with that silk over steel voice, which seemed to draw her in. She could imagine how one could feel protected within his powerful arms and there was real compassion reflected in his startlingly blue eyes and his voice.

Finally, she screwed up her courage and approached Joseph and her daughter. "I'm glad to finally meet you." She gingerly held out her hand, still a bit unnerved by those long sharp dangerous looking claws.

He reached out and took her hand in a firm but gentle grip. "I've heard a lot about you from Paulette and I find you just as impressive as her descriptions and my mother's descriptions led me to expect."

Whatever effect she had been expecting because of his claws the only thing she felt was the warm soft texture of the fur on his hand. This unexpectedly made her think of how her daughter might find that particularly enticing about him and began to blush. She looked up, startled at his unexpected chuckle, into eyes that sparkled with mischief. Then Maryanne noticed that her daughter was blushing as furiously as she was sure that she herself was. Then a look of pure devilment appeared in her daughter's eyes as her grin widened. "Yes, mother, his fur is **very** sensual."

Now Maryanne could plainly see, through the thinner fur around his face, that Joseph was also blushing and the last vestiges of her fear melted away as she started to giggle.

~ o ~

The three of them sat around the table talking about Paulette's wedding plans when Maryanne finally got up the nerve to ask the question that had been running around her mind since she had gotten her first look at Joseph. "What about children? Do you know how they are likely to turn out?" She glanced back and forth between them. "Or is that a moot point?"

Paulette laughed. "I wondered how long it would take you to work yourself up to asking that." She glanced lovingly over at Joseph who returned her look with a loving one of his own. "I'm hoping to have at least one boy and one girl." She reached up to caress his cheek. "Any boys we have will definitely be leonine like Joseph though I may have some small effect on my son's features." She looked back at her mother. "Any girls we have will be totally normal human like me. They won't even carry any of the genes that make Joseph what he is." She paused. "Although Elizabeth tells me that our daughters will probably have a higher immunity to disease and there is a chance that they will be a bit stronger physically than normal, but not spectacularly so." She chuckled. "Joseph's sister, Clarissa, is stronger than most of the boys she knows, much to their annoyance."

Maryanne thought a moment. "What about the rest of Joseph's family. You haven't said anything about them yet." She looked at her daughter curiously thinking about that woman that had come to get her last fall and those pictures from some of her magazines.

"Joseph's father and two brothers are like him. His mother, who you have already met, is New York District Attorney Elizabeth Maxwell and his father's mother is ex-District Attorney Catherine Chandler. Joseph's cousin, Devin, recently got married to Emily Hansen, the supermodel. That Beauty and the Beast fashion shoot in Central Park a year and a half ago was a real wedding and all of the leonine males in Joseph's family took part in it." She grinned. "If you look closely at the pictures from that show, you can see Joseph in some of them."

About this time, Maryanne had to remind herself to close her mouth before she started catching flies. She was well aware who Catherine Chandler, Elizabeth Maxwell and Emily Hansen were. She had also been fascinated by the pictures from that particular fashion shoot. In fact, she had even clipped the pictures out and saved them in a scrapbook.

~ o x o ~

Maryanne lay in her hotel room thinking about the last few incredible days. She had met and rubbed elbows with a few celebrities that she never thought a person of her meager position in life would ever be exposed to. She knew that her first class flight and hotel room had been courtesy of Joseph's family. She had been a guest in a very swanky high-end townhome located on Central Park West and gazed out over Central Park from the rooftop garden where her daughter would be having her wedding in a few days. While there she had met a famous fashion designer from Paris and the CEO of Burch Industries as well as the manager of the Wells-Chandler Foundation. She had even met the top supermodel in the industry and a world famous and very reclusive author of children's and young adult books the day after learning that she would soon be related to them by marriage. All of these famous and important people would be at her daughter's wedding.

Maryanne had always suspected, and occasionally feared, that her daughter's choice in a mate/husband would be somewhat unconventional, but even her wildest imaginings had been nothing next to the eventual reality of Joseph. She had heard about the urban myth of the Creature of Central Park and, like other's, had scoffed at it, only to find out that there were actually several of them. Now one of them was her daughter's lover and was about to become her husband. Yet despite his frightening appearance, she found that she considered Joseph to be far superior to any of Paulette's other past boyfriends.

She wondered how her late husband, Rob, would have reacted to all this. She had loved the man dearly and he had been a wonderful husband and father. But he would never have been able to handle the reality of something like Joseph or his male relatives. She thought it strange that Paulette could have so much of her father in her yet her adventurous personality was so radically different from his.

Her mind drifted back to Catherine and Vincent. She had been astounded to learn that Catherine Chandler was still alive. And the power and grace that still radiated from Vincent, like a beacon, left her in awe. She had been fascinated by stories of their life together. It was like a real life fairy tale, and now her daughter seemed to be living in the same magical fantasy.

Then she began to think about the one thing that was still being kept from her. Maryanne had wondered how Joseph and his family had all managed to remain hidden from the general public for so long. Paulette had told her that that was the one secret that she could not tell her. She could understand their need for secrecy and couldn't blame them. She knew that soon her daughter would also be relying on that same secrecy to keep her new family safe as well. Especially if she had kids.

~ o ~

Paulette lay in Joseph's arms thinking about her mother. She had handled the last few days a lot better than Paulette had dared to hope. The first meeting between her mother and Joseph had been the key and it had gone very well. Paulette had been nervous as hell all that day but she loved her mother and wanted her to be there at her wedding. That could only happen if she met and accepted Joseph. Fortunately, her mother had accepted Joseph fairly quickly and they had become friends.

Then she thought about her father. He had been a wonderful and loving father to her that short time he had been there for her. Though she had only been four when he died, she missed her father and was bit sad that he would not be there at her wedding but she also knew, from what her mother had told her, that he would not have been able to deal with Joseph or his family. At least she would have her mother there.

Paulette was also a little sad that she couldn't share the tunnels with her mother but Maryanne would be returning to Nebraska after the wedding so there was no need for her to know about Below. Also those that lived Below were very reluctant to share their secret if it was not necessary. Paulette understood their feelings and respected them. Her own family would soon be dependant on that same secrecy.

Still she would have dearly loved to have taken her mother down to the waterfall lake. With a sigh, she cuddled closer to Joseph. He tightened his arm around her and kissed first her forehead then, when she looked up, her lips. Another kiss and she was no longer thinking of her mother.

~ o x o ~

Paulette smiled brightly as she looked into her mother's shimmering eyes, then she did a quick twirl in her wedding gown. Clarissa and Cherry both clapped and laughed at her antics. "Honestly Paulette, one would think it was your wedding day the way you're prancing around." Cherry remarked with a giggle.

"You look absolutely lovely, honey." Emily remarked with a smile. "Most of the designers I work for would give their eye teeth to be able to design something as beautiful as that dress and their customers would pay a fortune for such a creation. That dress suits you and you fill it out perfectly. It was definitely made for you."

Paulette, Emily, Clarissa and Cherry had all become close friends since she had first come to the tunnels a year ago.

"I couldn't agree more." Her mother added. "You are the most beautiful bride I have ever seen." Then mother and daughter embraced. "Now, let's go get you started on your wonderfully magical new life."

Clarissa opened the door and quietly informed someone on the other side that they were ready to begin. After about a minute there was a knock at the door. Clarissa opened it wide and announced, "Here we go." Then she stepped out. After a pause, Cherry stepped out and finally Emily advanced through the door. With a deep sigh, Paulette stepped forward, escorted by her mother. As she passed through the door, Charles stepped up on her other side and together with her mother escorted her up the short aisle toward the front of the brownstone's rooftop garden.

~ o ~

Joseph stood anxiously at the front of the garden. Next to him stood his best man, William. His oldest brother Peter and his cousin Devin were serving as his groomsmen. The signal to begin was given and his attention was drawn to the back of the garden where the bride's party began advancing towards him.

William leaned towards him and spoke softly. "Remember, little brother, to take very good care of her and treat her right, cause I'll be waiting in the wings if you mess up."

"I know, big brother." Joseph responded. "I'm counting on it, because I want you to be there for her if, for any reason, I can't be." He glanced over at his brother. "But you can bet that I'm going to be doing my damnedest to keep her happy."

Paulette appeared at the doorway and Joseph became totally focused on her. His heart swelled with love as he watched the incredibly beautiful answer to all of his dreams advancing towards him. William sensed the emotions in his brother and smiled. He couldn't honestly begrudge his little brother this victory. Those two really did belong together.

~ o ~

Paulette reached the front of the garden and stood there before Joseph as the priest asked. "Who gives away the hand of this bride in marriage?"

Charles spoke up. "Her mother and I, as stand in for her late father, do." He placed her hand into Joseph's hand with a smile and a wink.

Charles stepped back, turned and, taking Maryanne's arm, escorted her to her seat, then he took his place beside Elizabeth on the other side of the aisle. He had fulfilled the role Paulette had requested of him.

~ o ~

As Joseph and Paulette stood in the Chandler-Wells family brownstone rooftop garden, they pledged their love and their lives to each other. Paulette let her love for Joseph flow freely through her, knowing that he could sense it, and she saw his response to it reflected in his eyes. They may not have the bond that the other Chandler-Wells couples had, but they were bonded together just as strongly in their hearts. Paulette felt her love and pride growing as she gazed into her lover's eyes and, seeing her destiny there, pledged her heart and soul to him.

Tears sprang to Paulette's eyes as she looked down at the ring Joseph was placing on her finger, and then she gazed up into his eyes as he recited the words of the ring ceremony. Joseph could feel his emotions swell to match hers as he gazed into his bride's shining brown eyes.

Paulette had become so lost in Joseph's eyes that she almost missed her cue when Emily nudged her then handed her the ring. She quickly recovered and, using a trick Catherine had showed her of twisting it to make it slide over the fur more easily, placed it on his finger. She echoed the words of the ring ceremony without really hearing them. She was too busy drowning in his eyes.

The two of them kissed sending sparks through her all the way down to her toes. The kiss lingered and deepened just a bit more than expected, then Joseph tilted his head back, and cut loose with a roar of pure joy and triumph as Paulette laughed with delight.

Maryanne nearly jumped out of her skin. Though she had been warned about this particular tradition, it had still caught her by surprise. Then the rest were cheering and she joined in. There had been something so joyous to that roar and the cheering response, that she couldn't help herself.

The bride and groom led everyone down the staircase to the first floor parlor where the reception was to be held. Though small, the reception was quite boisterous and jolly. Maryanne met a few more of Joseph's family and was surprised to learn how many of them were well known and well respected.

Joseph and Paulette were going to honeymoon at the Chandler lake house. The logistics of such an expedition had been worked out years ago for Catherine and Vincent's honeymoon. After dropping the honeymooners off at the lake house the rest of the caravan would head over to the home of the daughter of one of Catherine's oldest friends. Just after dark, those involved in the honeymoon caravan were in place and the bride and groom left for Connecticut. In the back of the van Joseph whispered to Paulette, "You **did** remember to pack that little turquoise thing I first saw you in?" Paulette blushed bright red as she giggled and nodded in the affirmative.

The next morning Maryanne flew back home to Nebraska. She had seen her daughter's future in a face unlike anything she had ever known existed and knew that Paulette's life would be full of adventure, great love and just a little bit of magic.

**_THE END_**

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_Watch for the Sequel, titled_**_ 'Little Miracles', _**_coming very soon_**_.  
_**

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'**Beauty and the Beast'** and its characters are owned by Witt-Thomas Productions and Republic Pictures. No infringement on copyrights is intended. This story is presented merely for the enjoyment of fans. Original concepts and story elements may be used by other authors as long as appropriate credit is given.

**_I Do _**_is sung by_**_ Jewel _**

**YouTube**_ = www . youtube watch?__v=bB2COfeRZy4_


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